


Stop Singing

by Artdirector123



Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: AU, Alternate Universe, Gen, Historical Jasper
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-08-29
Updated: 2016-06-17
Packaged: 2018-04-17 20:42:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 23
Words: 25,696
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4680746
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Artdirector123/pseuds/Artdirector123
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A series of drabbles based off of the Historical Jasper AU, Where Jasper was left on Earth after the war and wanders it as she tries to avoid the crystal gems and slowly comes to enjoy humanity.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. No Singing

When she had first been left behind, Jasper was furious. Furious with herself, with homeworld, with Rose Quartz and her little army...everything. After almost 5000 years of being stuck on earth, however, it didn't seem so bad anymore. Sure she was now isolated from the rest of her kind. Sure the only other gems on earth wanted her dead. Sure the dominant species on the planet was little more than a bunch of filthy apes...but at least they were entertaining apes.

If there was anything good about humans, it was that they knew how to have fun: wrestling, jousting, drinking poisonous substances until they became sick...the list could go on. It was also hilarious to pretend to be some sort of goddess before them. She still chuckled when she thought back to when the Egyptians made statues of her because she could shapeshift into a lioness. Stupid Egyptians...She also enjoyed the praise she got for doing the simplest of deeds, like pulling someone out of a ditch, or lifting a boulder off a path, or stopping bandits from ransacking a village. Humans were a very grateful species when they weren't being paranoid about witches. Sometimes though, even the praise could get on her nerves...

"Sweet Jasper, O sweet Jasper!~

She's stronger than even twenty bears,

could steal a dragon's egg right from its lair,

brave Jasper, O sweet Jasper!~" the small man sang as he strummed his lute, following behind the giant gem through the mountain pass. You save one minstrel from a gem beast and he decides to dedicate himself to you and follow you everywhere! Literally, everywhere. Jasper had to save him from one thing or another for about the fifth time that week. She couldn't get him to go away, so she had just resigned herself to letting him follow her. She grated her teeth as he continued his stupid song.

"With eyes of gold and heart as well,

she vanquishes beasts come from the fires of hell,

Brave Jasper, O Sweet-" With that, Jasper snapped.

She slammed her fist against a near by stone, causing a large crack to form across its surface. "STOP SINGING!" she shouted, turning to him. Her brows were furrowed and her teeth were bared at him. For once he was quiet. The young man stood there for a second in shock as she huffed.

"W-would you like a poem instead?" he asked quietly.

"NO!" she shouted. "No poetry, no songs, no nothing! I don't want to hear a peep out of you! You have not shut up ONCE since you started following me around!"

"But I'm expressing my gratitude!" he explained.

"How about you show it by being quiet instead?" she continued, "I would appreciate that a hell of a lot more!" The young man stared at Jasper for a few seconds, not making a sound before nodding. "Thank you," Jasper said turning around. The minstrel stayed quiet as they walked. Nothing but the sounds of nature surrounded them as they continued on their journey to find shelter for the evening. After about a half hour, the musician tapped on Jasper's arm. She turned to him with an uninterested expression. "Yes?" she asked.

"Well, It's just a bit boring to be completely silent," he said sheepishly, "Mind if I play something? Without singing of course." Jasper's eyes narrowed at him as he gave her a hopeful expression. She then sighed. It was hard to say no when he gave her that look.

"Fine," she said. He gave an excited smile, making her grin slightly. Humans got excited over the smallest of things. They then continued on their path as he gently strummed his lute behind her. A grin unconsciously forms on her face as she listened to the wordless tune. This she could enjoy far more. To be honest, this was better than him being quiet...barely.


	2. Bad idea

'Dammit. Dammit. Dammit.' Jasper ran through the streets trying to make it to the center square. She knew this was a bad idea. She knew they should have been staying away from larger human civilizations. She knew this would happen, but Thadius just had to stop to earn some money. He just had to walk into a town full of plague-paranoid, superstitious numbskulls. Worst of all, he just had to have her come with him. "It's a big town," he said, "What if someone robs me?" Of course, she couldn't stand a chance against his pleading eyes. Damn humans with their big eyes...So she followed him disguised as a cat. Surprisingly, everything was going fine at first. People were laughing and enjoying his music. His hat was brimming with different coins as it sat on the dusty road...  
Then someone stepped on her tail and you can probably guess what happened next: Jasper shouts. Someone cries "demon." People mob Jasper. Another cries "witch", and Thadius gets arrested. Jasper tries and save him, but someone stabs her through the stomach. Poof.  
About an hour later, she regenerated to a cleared market place and shouts coming from further down town. Her brows furrowed in rage. They were going to execute him. They were going to kill the idiot for something he didn't even do. She wasn't about to let let that happen. Jasper ran through the streets as fast as she could and found a crowded city square. Looking out from behind a corner, she spotted him. Thadius was up on a stage tied to a pole, crying out for help and pleading to be released. Dry wood was placed underneath. The crowd cheered as a man brought out a torch and began he walking up to the podium.   
She growled in anger. Jasper began pushing through the crowd, tossing aside people as she made her way to the small stage. The angry crowd turned fearful as they saw her coming. People began practically jumping out of the way as she barreled through. The man holding the torch turned just in time to see her toss him aside, causing the burning stick to fall to the ground.   
Thadius look at her in utter shock as she began untying him. "Y-you're alive!" he said in disbelief.  
"Yeah, what else in new?" she said, still working on a knot, she finally gave up and just ripped the rope off. Now that the crowd had recovered from the shock of her entrance, they became angry again.  
"B-but..." he said, still confused, "I saw you! A man stabbed you through the stomach!"   
"I got better," she said eyeing the people. They were now trying to get up on the stage. She wouldn't be able to take them all on at once. Jasper needed to think of another plan and fast.  
"HOW?!" Thadius continued, "You turned into a puff of smoke!"   
"I'll explain later," Jasper said, grabbing him, "hold on." With that, Jasper began to glow. The crowd stopped for a second, in awe as a white light enveloped her. The glowing stopped, and in Jasper's place was a giant eagle with her gem on its beak. The townsfolk took a few steps back out of fear. Thadius might have as well if the giant bird was holding him in her talons. Jasper raised her wings high before thrusting them down forcing both herself and the musician into the air. They soared high above the heads of the peasants below. Their mouths were agape as they screamed...or at least Jasper thought they were screaming, but as they got higher, the shouts of panic did not get any quieter.  
Jasper turned her head to see that it was her human companion currently freaking out. She rolled her eyes at him. "Oh calm down you big baby," she said, "I'm not going to drop you."  
He finally stopped shouting as they flew away. "T-thanks for saving me," he said quietly.  
"No problem," she said, "but there is no way in hell we are going back there."  
"Agreed," he responded. There was a moment of silence before Thadius suddenly gasped. "Uh oh..." he said.  
"What's wrong?" Jasper responded, not liking the sound of whatever was coming next.  
"I may have left my lute in the street where I was arrested..." he said sheepishly.  
Jasper said nothing for a moment. If she had hands, one would surely have connected to her face by now. "Fine," she said with a sigh as they changed course,"We'll go back and grab your stupid instrument. But if they catch you again, I'm not saving you this time."


	3. Warp pad

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, just to let you guys know, I am taking requests for this story and will also post a few drabbles about this AU that take place before or after Thadius.

I'd been years since she's seen one, or at least one still intact. It almost seemed like a miracle. It's crystine surface was smooth and crackless. Usually when she had found one of these, some human had found it and repurposed it or took a chunk out of it. However, this warp pad seemed untouched by any life. She couldn't stop herself from smiling, it spread across her features and caused her golden eyes to light up.

Her human companion on the other hand, wore a look of concern. Never had he seen her smile like this before. it almost seemed wrong on her face. "Jasper..." he said trying to get her attention, "What is that?"

She turned to him, still smiling and frightening him even further. "It's a warp pad!" she explained, excitement in her voice, "Gems used to use these to go anywhere in the world in seconds! Usually when I find these, they're damaged, but this one's perfect."

"How does that work?" Thadius questioned, "Does it fly? Is it magic?"

the smile fell from her face as she thought for a second, then a sly grin formed where the smile had once been. "Here," she said, "Let me show you." She grabbed the small human by the arm and pulled him onto the pad. Before he could protest, a chime sounded and a bright light formed around them.

"WAH!" he cried as he began to float. He immediately grabbed Jasper's arm and clung onto it for dear life. She chuckled at him, unfazed as they rushed along the one of the many cylinders of light. Finally the tube of light ended and they landed on another crystal circle. Thadius was suddenly pulled down by the return of force of Earth's gravity. causing him to let go of Jasper's arm. As he got back up, he looked around to see a field of giant strawberries, as far as they eye could see, among them were different weapons of various sizes. "What is this place?" he whispered as he looked around.

"A gem battlefield from thousands of years ago," she responded as she began to rummage through the bushes, "Now, where are you..."

"Why are there no..." Thadius asked as he looked around carefully, "...you know...bones?"

"Gems don't have bones," she said simply as she continued to look around,"Our bodies are made of light. That's why I was able to come back after being stabbed."

"Made of light? You mean like angels?" he asked.

Jasper sighed and rolled her eyes. "Yes, like angels," she said sarcastically. She picked up a weapon and weighed it in her hands before putting it down again.

"What are we doing here?" he asked looking around” There aren’t any other gems living here are there?”

"No. As good as I am at throwing punches, I'm sick of just using my bare hands. I need a new weapon and human one break too easily. plus I can't exactly walk up to a blacksmith and ask for one anyways," she said continuing to try out weapons, "Gem weapons can last for almost an eternity."

"Isn't this grave robbing?" he asked with concern.

Jasper shrugged. "I prefer the term repurposing." She then pulled a battle axe out of the ground and grinned. "Perfect!" she commented, weighing it.

"Let's get out of here," Thadius pleaded, "This place is creeping me out..." Before Jasper could respond, a loud roar filled the air. Both turned to see a giant gem beast standing in the middle of the field. Its purple skin was covered in spikes. Its long, gangly legs ended in heavy hooves, and on its head were two long, twisting horns. It snorted angrily as it stared at them.

"Hang on a second," Jasper said, smirk forming on her face, "I've got to break this puppy in. Then we can go." With that, she charged at the beast, letting out a battle cry.


	4. Tavern

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This drabble doesn't have Thadius in it. I will mark future drabbles like this with a date and location.

1543, Russia

It was a cold winter night outside. A blizzard roared, and there was no life for miles around. No sound filled the air except the howl of the wind and the shuttering of tree branches, ready to break under the torrent of snow. Inside the small wooden inn, however, was much different. Men laughed in drunken joy, singing songs by the warm fire. Stories spun through the air, both true and "stretched" as the storyteller may admit after a bit of pressure. The atmosphere glowed with warmth as men drank and gambled...that is until the door of the inn swung open.

A cold wind filled the room and the sudden roar of it brought the room to a hush. All eyes were directed at the figure standing in the doorway. It was tall, taller than even a bear. A skin of said creature hung as a cloak over its heavy, tattered coat. A fur cap and scarf hid the figure's face aside from a pair of glowing, yellow eyes. A thick white mane spilled down from under the cap and fell messily to the back of the person's knees.

Everything was still until the giant began to stride into the room, its imposing presence causing everyone around to shrink in their seats as its eyes scanned around. It made its way over to the bartender and sat down in a seat, causing the small chair to groan under the massive weight. It removed the cap and scarf, revealing a crystalline nose and orange skin with red stripes. A small gasp could be heard from a few of the patrons to the bar, earning a swift glare from the giant. It turned back to the bartender, who was still quaking in his boots.

"W-What may I do for you?" the man asked in a shaky voice.

The giant reached into its pockets and pulled out a sack of gold, before dropping it on the table. "One tankard, please. Anything will do," she said in a gruff, yet feminine voice.The bartender quickly delivered it. The giant drank it slowly, an awkward silence filled the air as the other patrons watched nervously. She slammed the iron mug on the table when she finished, licking her lips. "More," she said with a small grin. The bartender refilled it. Again the giant drank slowly as the room remained silent.

The people waited quietly, hoping whatever that orange thing was would have her fill soon and leave. That didn't happen. The giant stayed there for an hour as the inn remained silent. The men returned to their drinks as they watched the creature carefully. They whispered questions to one another, wondering what the giant creature was doing there and where it came from.

Finally the giant got up to leave, putting her cap and scarf back on. She walked over to the door, not seeming any less sober than when she walked in. As she opened the door, she turned to the inn keeper. "Your tavern is dull," she said in a disappointed tone, "I was told this place would be more lively. I guess I was misinformed." With that, the giant stepped back out into the blizzard, slamming the door behind her.


	5. Vacation

The little Arabian city was bustling with people. Children played in the streets, merchants bartered over goods, and Thadius was in the streets playing music. A small crowd surrounded him. He loved this place. It was warm and the sun shown down for longer as opposed to the winter that they were currently facing back in Europe. The people were also very nice, even though he couldn't understand a word they said. Jasper seemed to know their language though, so he could always just have her teach it to him. The people were also fairly generous, as several gold coins filled the cap he had on the ground in front of him. He could stay here for awhile.

Suddenly, he heard some shouting. He turned his head to see Jasper running towards him. Before he could do anything, the gem had grabbed him by the waist and scooped up his cap. "We need to go. NOW!" she announced as she kept running. She looked over her shoulder and swore under her breath.

"What?! Why?!" he asked, adjusting himself under her arm. He peered over her shoulder and his jaw dropped as he saw nearly fifty sword toting men running after them.

"I managed to get on the sultan's bad side," she muttered. Jasper ran through an animal trader's stand, knocking over a cage of chickens and releasing them.

Thadius looked at her incredulously. "What did you do, try to assassinate him?!" he questioned.

"NO! What, do you think I'm crazy?" she snapped, "I just politely declined his marriage proposal."

"...He's sending people to kill us because you said no to him?!" Thadius repeated in disbelief.

"Well, not entirely," she clarified, "I may have also punched him in the face and possibly broke his jaw."

"Why did you do that?" he asked.

"He wouldn't take no for an answer and it was getting on my nerves," she answered as she jumped over a cart, "Plus he's a giant pig and treats his wives like crap. He needed to get his block knocked off." They came to a sharp turn. Jasper gripped the corner of a building as she sped around it. The men following them crashed into the wall of a building trying to make it. They managed to pick themselves up and continue, however. They chased them all throughout the city, down alleyways and across busy streets. They managed to follow them all the way to the outskirts of the town.

"Wow! These guards really don't want us to escape!" Thadius commented. The men were tiring, but they weren't about to give up.

"Well, I did assault their leader," Jasper responded, "I would be more surprised if they had given up by now." Suddenly, a large gleaming object appeared in the distance. Jasper put a hand to her forehead and squinted her eyes. Hidden in the sand, there was a large, crystalline surface. A smirk crossed her face. "Hold on," she assured her companion, "We're almost back to the warp pad." She began to excelerate again.

"Please don't let it be a mirage!" Thadius silently prayed. They made it to the crystal circle protruding from the sands. Jasper gently set down the human onto its sleek surface. Thadius looked up to see the men were almost upon them. "Jasper, hurry!" he urged.

"Calm down," she said as a chime sounded. They were suddenly enveloped in a bright blue light. The image of the guards faded away as did gravity. After a few minutes of floating, they landed on another warp pad. No longer did a hot desert surround them, but a field of snow instead. "See, I told you there was nothing to worry about," she said.

Thadius shivered in the cold. "O-on second thought, let's go b-back," he said, teeth chattering, "I-I'd r-rather deal with Arabian knights than th-this cold any d-day!"


	6. Japan

1310, Japan  
crickets chirped in the forest as the moon shown bright in the sky. The cool night air flooded through the theater area as the calming music played. Paper lanterns lit up the stage. Guests watched on as the actors danced on the stage. Colorful masks and wigs covered the actors' faces. They moved back and forth as the narrator and music gave them direction.   
"Our young hero wished he could stay with his lover, but he bid her farewell so that he may begin on his quest up the mountain to face the snake spirit," the Narrator spoke. The two actors on stage made dramatic gestures as the one portraying the hero's lover left the stage. The audience was loving it, some even moved to tears by the performances.  
.........  
Jasper walked cautiously through the dark forest, listening carefully for even the slightest noise. She had been tracking down a supposed spirit that a human from a near by village had told her about for a day now. The leaves of the trees fluttered softly in the wind. She stopped walking as she found herself in a small clearing. The moon's light left a soft glow on the surrounding trees. Everything was quiet.  
Then Jasper heard a snap of a twig. She quickly turned and looked into the shadows of the forest. Something in the shadow of a tree gleamed in the moonlight. She stood still for a second before summoning her weapon and slowly approaching the shining object. Her shoulders were tense as she stretched out a hand.  
Suddenly, a figure burst from the shadow, causing Jasper to back up. Its long droopy body seemed to move back and forth. whipping tendrils protruded from its black body. It glared at Jasper and made a hissing noise, despite its lack of a mouth. It lashed one of its tendrils out at her. She dodged it, causing the hook at the end of the tendril to sink itself into a tree. The tree instantly started to shrivel up and release a putrid smell as the leaves fell of.  
The creature attempted to retract the tendril, but it was caught in the bark of the dead plant. Jasper took the opportunity to land a blow on the creature, causing it to fly backwards. With its tendril now free, the creature hissed again at her and ran off into the forest. Jasper spent no time waiting to give chase.  
.......  
"'Oh please, dear guardian, let me pass'" the narrator projected, "'I have no offering to give you, yes, but I must fulfil my quest!'" On stage the actor playing the hero made begging motion to another in a large, elaborate costume with a mask resembling a pig. The pig man pretended to stroke his beard in consideration. "The forest guardian thought or a moment," the narrator continued, "then he replied 'Hmm, If you have no offering for me, then I demand a dance instead.'" Another song began playing.  
.......  
Jasper chased the creature all throughout the forest. Scrapes and nicks covered her arms where the plant life had protested her forced passage. A thorny vine had even tangled itself around her but she didn't care. She needed to get rid of this gem before it found its way near any people.  
However, she began to hear music and see lights over tree line. Jasper's eyes widened for a moment before she gave a groan and facepalmed. She had been chasing the creature right towards a whole group of humans. She quickly shook her head to get herself back in the moment. She had to think quick, or a lot of people were going to get hurt. She looked around before noticing a fork in the path. A smirk formed on her face as she got an idea. Jasper made sharp turn and sped up.   
The creature soon noticed it wasn't being chased and slowed to a stop. It looked around carefully in the dark. Jasper waited in the shadows, crouched like a tiger watching its prey. Once it seemed like the corrupted gem had let its guard down, she pounced. Jasper lept through the air, aiming her helmet to land directly on top of the creature. The gem looked up at her in shock, but was just barely able to leap out of the way. Jasper crashed into the ground causing a dust cloud to form.  
When the dust cloud cleared, she noticed the gem was gone. She groaned as she picked herself up. She had no idea where it could have gone, but she knew where she needed to check first. With that, she ran off in the direction of the music.  
......  
"Moved by his bravery, the wind spirit gave him the sword of storms to aid him on his quest," Jasper could hear the narrator announce. The brush thinned out as she found herself behind an outdoor theater. There she spotted a few actors getting into costume. It appeared to be some kind of snake. She could also see a black figure slowly approaching them, hooked tendrils lashing about, and a greedy look in its eyes.   
Jasper snarled and lunged at the creature, knocking it to the ground. The men getting dressed looked up to see the monster and the gem. Their eyes grew as wide as dinner plates before they ran away screaming.The gem beast threw Jasper off of itself and growled angrily. She and the creature squared off, watching each other's movements carefully. Finally the corrupted gem launched itself at her. Jasper grabbed one of the poles used to support the snake costume and batted it away.   
The beast landed with a yelp of pain. Jasper swung at it again as it tried to get up, but it slinked away. It once again tried to flee, but instead of going into the forest, it ran around the corner and into the theater. Jasper swore and thumped the pole against the ground before following.  
"Finally our hero made it to the peak, but what was lying in waiting was more than what he expected," the narrator continued. The audience leaned in as the music became ominous. Suddenly, the gem beast ran out onto the stage. The theater staff gaped in confusion. Behind his mask, the lead actor bore a face of surprise and fear. The audience however, loved it. There were multiple ooos and aaahs from the crowd below the stage.  
The monster hissed angrily and began inching towards the actor. The man began shaking in fear and dropped his wooden sword as he backed away. The narrator nor any of the other performers had any idea of what to do. Then Jasper jumped in front of the terrified actor and knocked the gem beast back. It rolled across the wooden stage and let out a pained warble.  
"Uhhh....at what seemed like the end for our hero, he dropped his sword, summoning a thunder demon!" the narrator improvised. He motioned to the musicians and after a moment they too began to improvise, playing a fast, energetic drum beat.  
The beast lashed at Jasper's legs and arms with its tendrils. She jumped and twisted out of the way of each strike. She in return swung the pole at monster, it dodging most of her strikes. They exchanged blows, moving back and forth like a dance. Soon they even began moving to the beat of the heavy drums. Jasper tried to punch the creature or land a heavier blow, but every time she got close, she spent most of that time avoiding the poisonous limbs.   
Finally she managed catch one of the tendril as it flew past her face. The audience gasped. Jasper pulled on it and began swinging the creature through the air. It flew helplessly around and around, until she slammed it down onto the floor boards with a loud crack. The monster disappeared into a puff of smoke, leaving behind only a small jet stone.  
Jasper panted for a few seconds before going to pick up the small stone and crushing it. Then she looked up to see the crowd of people watching her. An awkward silence filled the air. Jasper groaned. She knew what would happen next. They’d probably form an angry mob and chase after her for wrecking their show. Before Jasper could say or do anything, the crowd erupted into applause. She looked out into the cheering crowd, not quite sure what to do. Then a smirk came to her face. She gave a small shrug and a bow as the people continued to cheer.


	7. Dance

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Because several people requested this, here you go.

You could still hear the music and see fireworks from yards away. Jasper and Thadius left the festival in the little chinese town behind as they walked back to the warp pad. Jasper's cape billowed in the chilly wind, but for once, Thadius didn't seem to mind the cold. There was a gleam of joy in his brown eyes and a skip in his step as they walked.

"That was incredible!" he exclaimed, "The food was amazing and the music was absolutely beautiful!" Jasper grinned at the small human's excitement, though her face was still hidden by her hood. "I wish we could have stayed longer," he said, looking back in the direction of the village.

"it was getting dull," Jasper reasoned with a shrug.

"You probably would have enjoyed it more if you joined in on the dancing," Thadius argued.

"Gems don't really dance for recreation," Jasper stated.

This caused Thadius to burst out laughing. "Not for recreation?!" he repeated in disbelief, "Is there any other reason to dance?"

Jasper rolled her eyes at him. "Gems dance to fuse," she explained.

"Fuse?" Thadius echoed in confusion.

"When gems are in sync, they can combine themselves into one, more powerful being," she said.

"Is it permanent?" he asked.

"No," she explained, "Gems in a fusion can unfuse at anytime."

"It sounds like something quite beautiful," he said, "being so intune with another that you can become a single person..."

"I guess..." Jasper responded, not really interested in the conversation. There was a moment of silence between them before Thadius spoke up again.

"....Can humans fuse with gems?" he asked. Jasper stopped and raised an eyebrow at him. A wide grin crossed her face before she burst out laughing.

"Of course not!" she laughed, "If humans can't fuse with humans, then they certainly can't fuse with gems."

"Why not?" he asked.

"Well first off," she said, "You need to have a body made of light. Last time I checked, you humans are made of meat." She poked him in the arm for emphasis.

Thadius rubbed his arm with a grin. A thoughtful frown formed on his face. "Then why don't you dance with humans?" he asked, "If there's no worry about fusing with one, then why not?"

Jasper stopped walking and thought for a second. "I guess I just never thought to," she responded, "Why? Are you asking me to dance?"

"Well that wasn't my original intention," he said rubbing the back of his head akwardly, "but it would be nice if we could..."

Jasper let out a snort of amusement. "Very well," she said, "but I lead." Jasper then grabbed his hand and guided him into position. They could still hear the music coming from the town. One of her large hands covered his left shoulder while the other held his right hand as she pulled him along to the tempo. He tripped over himself a few times, but soon got a hang of it. 'This wasn't too horrible,' Jasper thought to herself as the moved to the Rhythm. They began moving faster and faster. Unaware of a soft light surrounding them.

The light became brighter as the song ended, and Jasper finally noticed it as it engulfed them both. Her eyes wide in shock before disappearing in the blinding light. The light began to grow and stretch until it became a tall, lithe form with broad shoulders. Four arms extended from its body, the smaller pair extending from just below the figure's rib cage. The light dissipated, revealing the figures pattern of orange skin with pale stripes. It's clothing was warm in color and ornate in style. A long, regal-looking cape extended down its back and a wreath sat on its head.

Its four eyes open to reveal two orange and two brown. Messy dirty blonde hair fell to its shoulders. The figure looked itself over with wide eyes, its features switching from shocked, to excited, to panicked, to disturbed. "We..." It spoke in a quiet, deep-yet-feminine voice, " we fused..."

The fusion began to laugh uncontrollably. "This!" it said, "This is incredible! And strange! I feel like I'm in some kind of giant hug! Everything around me-us- is so tiny! Look! I-we are taller than that tree!"

The fusion's face changed from elation to confusion. "H-how?!" it shrieked to seemingly no one, "This should be impossible! Humans and gems can't-....I'm mean they're not supposed to....Grrr this shouldn't be able to exist."

"Somethings in life don't make sense," it replied to itself with a shrug.

"Yes but--" the being argued back,"RRRRRG!" The giant figure punched a near by tree, causing it to break in half. The arms gripped each other. Jasper didn't know what to make of this situation. Everything told her that this shouldn't have happened. It just felt wrong. She didn't feel like a gem anymore. There was a heart now thudding in their chest that she didn't like. It kept beating and beating and it was getting on her nerves. The more angry she got, the faster it beat. Also there was some kind of painful sensation all over their skin. It was like nothing she had ever felt before. It stung all over. Had Thadius been injured? The figure looked itself over desperately for any injuries.

"Jasper, what's wrong?" Thadius spoke through the fusion, causing it to stop and look up.

"Why are we in pain," she almost demanded.

"It's cold," Thadius responded.

"So?" she almost spat, "What does cold have to..." A look of realization crossed the fusion's face. Jasper didn't like this. She wanted out as soon as possible. The fusion began to glow as the two being that made it up split apart. They both toppled over into the snow.

Jasper quickly shot up. The stinging was gone. She looked herself over. Relief flooded through her as she noticed that she was back to normal. There was no longer a frantically pumping heart in her chest. She was back to being just a gem. She had hated being part of that fusion. Despite how large it was, she felt so....fragile. She felt like at any moment she could just stop existing. For the first time in a long time she honestly feared death. Was that what humans always felt like?

"That was amazing!" Thadius exclaimed as he got up, "I felt like a giant! Like nothing could get in our way! I could see everything for miles around!" He turned to Jasper to see she was still kneeling on the ground, a very distant look on her face. "Jasper," he said walking over to her and putting a hand on her shoulder, "Jasper are you alright?"

She suddenly got up not making eye contact with him. "We are never doing that again," she said, walking away. Thadius followed after her, worry written on his face.

A long silence was between them as the walked. "I'm sorry," Thadius finally broke the silence, "I didn't know that would happen. Can...Can you forgive me?"

Jasper suddenly stopped and turned towards him. She stared down at him for a moment before taking off her fur cape and wrapping it around his shoulders. "Come on," she said, "Let's find someplace warmer."


	8. TV

Present day, Beach city  
"IT'S ON!IT'S ON!IT'S ON!" the little half gem giddily shouted as he ran upstairs to the TV, passing Pearl by the counter and Jasper sticking her head inside the fridge. It had been a few weeks since the Crystal Gems had rediscovered her and she had come to live with them. Really, it was pretty much just to keep an eye on her, but at least she got to come and go as she pleased. She look up to see him practically bouncing in his seat as the screen came to life.  
"What's on?" she asked with halfway curiosity. The little half gem, Steven as the gems called him, had recently shown her a program called "Under the Knife". If that was what was airing, she might tune in with him. It was interesting, although the medical science in it was practically nonsense. Granted, she'd seen worse quacks. She could still remember a Black Plague doctor that had been a fruit salesman the week prior to dawning the signature mask.  
"The new episode of 'Crying Breakfast Friends'!" Steven announced, "They're airing a new episode every day this week!"  
"Oh," she said losing interest, "Nevermind then." She then turned back to the fridge as she scanned the shelves. She let out a disappointed grunt. "You're out of beer," she said, grabbing the bottle of juice instead.  
Pearl glared at her. "That's because none of us drink except you," she said in an annoyed tone, "Why do you drink anyways? You're a gem. You can't exactly get drunk unless you drink an entire liquor store!"  
Jasper shrugged and poured herself a glass of the orange liquid. "I like the taste," she said, before gulping down the contents of the glass.  
An annoying wail filled the air, coming from the TV upstairs. Pearl rubbed the side of her head. "I really don't get why Steven loves that show so much," Pearl commented, "Amethyst was right. I really don't get who would want to watch a show about people crying..."  
"Really? It makes sense to me," Jasper said. The other gem looked at her in confusion.  
"How?" Pearl asked.  
"Isn't it obvious?" Jasper said, "Humans love to watch the suffering of others. Well, a lot of them seem to, anyways."  
Pearl was taken aback surprise. "You're kidding, right?" Pearl said.  
Jasper chuckled. "Over 5000 years stuck here and how much time did you actually spend around humans?" she asked rhetorically, "But yeah they love it. If you don't believe me, look at their own history. Why else would Shakespeare have to compete with the public executions for viewers?" Pearl was speechless as Jasper poured herself another glass of juice.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this is so short. Still hope you guys like it. I have to wonder though, how much do the crystal gems actually know about human history? They lived pretty far away from most developing nations and they even had a fence up for a time. Even now they don't seem to interact much with them.


	9. Humans

In her near 5000 years on earth, Jasper had seen a lot of humanity. She had seen their triumphs and their failures. She had seen how fearsome and brave they could be....but she had also see how cruel, selfish, and stupid they could be. She saw how they would steal, lie, and cheat to get what they wanted. She saw how they would turn on eachother so easily, killing one another for stupid reasons. They would start wars over women, blame plagues on groups of people for simply being different, and claim superiority over others for the color of their skin. They would enslave, abuse, and slaughter; sometimes for no good reason.  
Jasper herself had been the victim of their aggression on a multitude of occasions, and sometimes it made her wonder why she even bothered helping those useless creatures. What did Rose Quartz ever see in these creatures? Surely she knew about all the horrible things they had done. They were no better than the world she fought against, possibly even worst. Did she regret protecting this planet and giving up her home? What about her followers, did they still agree with her? To be honest, it really didn't matter. Rose and her followers might just be insane for all she knew. The biggest question she was asking was why did she, Jasper, protect them? She knew exactly what horrible things they were capable of, yet she still did it.   
Her gem began to float in the air of the small cave. Thadius looked up from where he was sitting. A bright glow of white light surrounded the gem. It turned into a silhouette of a bulky form, before flickering between shapes. Finally it solidified into a large orange form. Jasper's hair was still as long as ever, but a fur cape rested on her shoulders. Underneath was a simple, red sleeveless shirt. Armored gloves covered her hands and her pants tucked in to a large pair of boots.  
When she landed, Thadius rushed over to her and gave her a hug. "You're back!" he exclaimed with joy.  
"Of course," she said in confusion, "My gem wasn't damaged. Why wouldn't I come back?"  
"It's been days!" he said, concern written on his face, "You were taking so long, I was worried you wouldn't come back."  
Jasper didn't know what to say. As she looked down at the smaller human, she felt something soft underneath her foot. She lifted it up to see Thadius' cloak. "Why is your cloak on the ground?" she asked.  
"I had your gem laying in it because I thought you might be cold..." he said, "I didn't want you to get sick while you were in there."  
"Thadius, I don't get--" she started. Then she looked down at him. A mix of concern and joy filled his brown eyes. Jasper sighed and patted his light brown hair. "Thank you," she said. This is why she protected them. For the little things like this. For all the horrible things they were capable of, there were still some good hidden in them.


	10. Meeting

Present day, Swiss Alps  
BAM! BAM! BAM! Steven crouched into the corner of the small compartment in the cave in fear. The gem beast stopped to peer inside the hole with it's goat like eye before continuing to try and break through. BAM! BAM! BAM!  
Today had started out much like any other day. Pearl had made Steven pancakes for breakfast. Amethyst had done something to get on Pearl's nerves. Then Garnet had walked in from the temple saying that there was a mission and they headed out, just like any other day.  
They warped into a snowy mountain pass. Gravel and icy patches had lined the ground. Garnet had warned them to be careful. Steven wished he had listened.  
It wasn't long until they found the beast. It was a little bigger than a rhino but had a body like a ferret. Large lion like paws were at the ends of its green legs. Thick wooly fur covered its body. Two large ram horns sat on its head, and two large canine teeth stuck out from its mouth.  
It took one look at them before bleating and rushing at them. They jumped out of the way as it hit the wall of a cliff side, steven just barely avoiding being trampled.  
A few large rocks tumbled down the cliff straight for him."Steven!" Pearl shouted before picking him up and getting as far away from the falling rocks as possible, "Stay here! This area is too unstable for you!"  
"But I want to help!" he responded, "I Know how to use my weapon now! I'll be safe, I promise!"  
Pearl bit her lip and looked to Garnet, who was currently digging her heels in the ground, pushing ggem beast back by the horns. "Let him help," she said, stopping for a second to adjust her shades, "He'll be fine." Pearl turned and sighed before nodding at steven.  
Steven gave a determined look before running back into the fray. The beast stopped trying to push against garnet and began running wild in The other direction. It shook its head violently, tossing the fusion to the side. Amethyst had been gripping onto the back of the beast when it suddenly bucked her off. As it tried to run away, Steven charged at it, forming a bubble around himself. He slammed into the corrupted gem, popping the bubble and throwing creature against a wall...which collapsed.  
The crystal gems stared in shock as steven and the corrupted gem fell into a cavern behind the collapsed cliff side. "STEVEN!!!!" they cried. Before they could do anything, rocks fell from the cliff face completely covering the entrance.  
.....  
"AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!" Steven cried as he fell. The two of them fell for at least a hundred feet before hitting the ground. The gem beast hit the floor first, and broke Steven's landing as he fell into its thick fur. He rolled off and fell onto the cold stone floor. He rubbed his head in the darkness and groaned.  
Looking around, he could see nothing but blackness. He pulled up his shirt and made his gem illuminate the room. The cavern was fairly vast, with several openings leading into other parts of the cave.  
Steven suddenly heard a deep groan from behind him. He turned in fear to see the beast getting up. It turned and glared at him with a snort. He backed up slowly, summoning his shield. "Nice gem..." he said, continuing to back away. The beast pawed at the ground and rammed into his shield, sending him flying back into a wall. Steven opened his eyes to see it charging at him. He looked around franticly and spotted a passage big enough for him to fit through. He squeezed through it as the beast hit the wall.  
His gem illuminated the chamber to reveal a skeleton in a tattered uniform laying on something. Steven nearly jumped in surprise before he saw what it was laying on. Two large bags of gold sat behind it. Clutched in the skeleton's hand was a big black ring box. Upon closer inspection, it appeared to have a lock on it, but it was almost completely rusted away.  
Steven suddenly heard an enraged noise come from outside the chamber. He backed into the room as he saw the gem beast peering in. That's how this whole situation happened. That's how Steven found himself crouching in the corner, wishing this was all a bad dream. He was out of options. "HELP!" he cried out in desperation. He knew no one was coming. The gem beast banged its horns against the wall again.  
This time, the hit caused the room to shake. The ring box fell from the skeleton's hands and the lock fell off as it hit the floor. Steven could see a soft glow coming from inside the box. Steven picked it up and thought hard about opening it. There was definetly something magical inside. Whether that thing was good or bad, he had no idea. The situation was already dire, so it didn't change much if it was something bad.  
"Please help me!" he whispered before opening it. Inside the box was an orange, kite-shaped gem.  
The gem glowed and floated out of the box. A white light extended from it and began to grow. Steven was worried for a second that he had released another corrupt gem. However, as the form solidified as humanoid, he let out a sigh of relief. It flipped through many different form before settling and the glow receding. An orange-skinned being fell to the ground and landed in a kneeling position. Long hair flowed down from what appeared to be a coon-skin hat. A cloak hung over the gem's body, which was covered in what looked like some kind of uniform. Coming out from the sleeves of the uniform were two large hands covered with fingerless gloves. A scarf hung around her neck and large boots covered her feet.  
The gem looked up to reveal a striped face with wide eyes. Although the white light of reforming had faded, an orange glow still emanated from her gem. There was a moment of silence. Steven was about to say something, when the gem suddenly spoke. "Nach all dieser Zeit ... Ich bin frei?" she said to herself.  
"Um..." Steven said, confused by the giant orange gem.  
She turned to him, almost surprised by his presence. "Hast du mich aus der Box befreit, kleiner Junge?" she asked. She began to walk over to him when the creature banged its horns against the wall again, letting out an angry bleating noise. The gem glared at the hole in wall. "Es scheint, als hätten wir Gesellschaft..." the gem commented in annoyed tone.  
Suddenly, the gem's coonskin hat changed into a large orange crash helmet. She then rushed at the wall and broke through it. The gem beast was taken aback by her sudden entrance. "Sie hat sich mit dem falschen Edelstein angelegt," she growled, glaring at the chimera. She charged at the beast and knocked it back. The beast got up and shook it's head, only to see the large gem jump on its back and pull its head back by its horns. The beast ran around enraged, trying to buck of the long haired gem.  
It finally managed to throw her across the room and she hit the wall with a grunt. She opened her eyes with a groan to see the beast charging at her again. She quickly ripped a stalagmite out of the ground and rolled out of the way. As the beast slammed against the wall, she thrust the large stalagmite into the monster's belly. It roared before disappearing into a puff of smoke. A single green stone fell to the ground.  
Steven saw the whole thing, watching in awe. He was just about to run over to her to gush about the battle when he saw her pick up the green stone. Her grip on it became tight and Steven's smile faded as her heard a crystaline creaking noise coming from the stone.  
"Wait stop!" he cried, running over to her, "Please don't break it!" Her grip softened but she looked at him in confusion. Did she not understand him? "No crush!" Steven tried to explain, using gestures.  
The gem continued to stare at him in confusion. "This thing nearly kills you and you want me to leave it alone?" she responded in perfect English, "You are one strange child."  
Steven gasped. "You can speak English?" he asked.  
The gem shrugged. "When I need to. I can speak several languages. You kind of have to learn them when you travel as much as I have," she explained. "You can't however, so I guess I'm not in Prussia anymore, am I?" she reasoned.  
Steven looked at her in confusion. "What's 'Prussia'?" he asked.  
The gem looked at him in surprise. "Crap, I must have been down here a lot longer than I thought..." she said more to herself. Her look of surprise turned to confusion. "Wait a minute, how did you get down here?" she asked.  
"I sort of fell..." he said while rubbing the back of his head.  
"How aren't you dead?! That must have been more than a 50 foot drop on to solid rock?!" she questioned I surprise.  
"Well I fell onto that giant monster and it broke my fall," he said.  
"That explains a lot..." the gem muttered.  
"Hey can you help me get back up there?" he asked, "My family is up there and I'm sure they're very worried."  
She look up at the walls of the chamber. "Hmmm...Alright, I guess," she said, "It can't be too hard. Plus, I do owe you for setting me free." A large smile formed on Steven's face. The gem handed him the green the green stone before she picked him up and set him on her shoulders. "By the way, what's your name, squirt?" she asked.  
"I'm Steven!" he said, "What's yours?"  
"I'm Jasper." she responded as she began to climbe the wall, "Make sure you hold on, kid. I don't think there's going to be anything to break your fall this time."  
.....  
The Crystal gems had spent over a hour trying to clear the rocks way. Finally Pearl gave up. "We're never going to get him back!" she cried as she slumped to the ground. "This is all my fault! I shouldn't have let him come along..." she continued.  
Garnet put a hand on her shoulder. "Pearl, if its anyone's fault, its mine," she said, "I was the one who let him continue in the fight." "We still have a chance of saving him, I can see it. We just need to press forward," she said.  
Just then, Amethyst pulled away another stone, creating an opening. Steven's head popped out of the hole a wide smile on his face as he crawled out. "STEVEN!" they all cried out in joy, running over to pull him into a big hug.  
"We were so worried! We thought we'd never see you again!" Pearl said, tears streaming down her face. She then pulled him into her arms and began examining him. "Are you alright? The gem beast didn't hurt you did it?" she asked frantically.  
Steven giggled at the attention. "I'm fine, and look!" he said showing the green corrupted gem to them.  
The three looked at it in surprise. "No way! Did you do that all on your own?" Amethyst gasped.  
Steeven shook her head. "I had help from a friend! Another gem down there saved me," he said.  
The gems looked at him with worry and confusion. "Another gem?!" Pearl echoed, "You don't mean Lapis or Peridot, do you?"  
Once again he shook his head no. "No, this is someone new!" he said. he then peered over their shoulders and smiled. "Look! There she is now!" he said.  
They all turned to see a large orange gem pulling herself from the rubble. The Crystal Gems stared at her like they had seen a ghost. She stared back at them with an exprestion of shock.  
"Jasper?!" the three Crystal Gems said in unison.  
Jasper facepalmed. "Verdammt..." she groaned.


	11. secret

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this took so long. I hope you guys enjoy this.

400 A.D. Somewhere in the Middle East

She was sick of this. All of it: Constantly running, constantly looking over her shoulder, constantly having to avoid anything related to her own kind...ect. She could barely sit down and rest anymore. Sure they would stop for a couple hundred years if she laid low enough, but then they would remember and start the chase up all over again. This time though, they had kicked it into high gear. Almost every where she turned they were there, though rarely did she see Rose Quartz anymore. Why did they even want to capture her anymore?! It isn't like she was a threat to their precious planet and dopey little ape-pets. Sure she didn't really like them, but she wasn't trying to hurt them either! At least not anymore. A few thousand years ago, definitely, but not now. She had to get those gems off her back once and for all...but how?

Jasper flopped down on the hot sand and growled in anger. She stared up at the clear blue sky before sighing and closing her eyes. It was hopeless. The only way she could escape them is if she were dead. She lay there, tired and defeated. After a little while she drifted off to sleep.

She awoke with a start as she felt something tugging on her gem. Her eyes flew open to see a human gripping it with his hand, frozen as he realized she was alive. Almost immediately, her hand flew up to the man's throat and gripped it tightly. The man gripped the hand as she rose to her feet, lifting him off the ground. His legs kicked back and forth and his eyes were as wide as saucers as she stared him down.

"I'm Sorry! I'm Sorry! I'm Sorry!" he gasped, "Please let me go!" Jasper's glare grew more venomous as her grip tightened further.

"Give me one good reason why I shouldn't crush you right now," she growled.

"You want jewels?" he choked out desperately, "I have plenty! Pick whatever you want!" Jasper's gaze shifted over to a camel laying down. Heavy bags hung from its sides. She tossed the man aside as she walked over to it. Examining the contents of it, she noticed a few that looked very familiar: jaspers. She looked upon them with disgust. Sure they weren't alive, but it was still disturbing to know humans bought and sold these. How would humans feel if gems sold their bones and wore them around as a sign of wealth? As she looked a particularly large polished jasper, an idea came to mind. What if the Crystal Gems only THOUGHT she was dead? A wicked grin crossed her face.

"I'll take this one," she said. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed movement. Almost instantaneously, she grabbed the arm of the merchant wielding a dagger. She turned to him with a glare. The ragged jewel merchant gulped loudly.

.....

A week later, North America

"There she is!" Amethyst cried. Jasper turned her head and feigned shock. Her plan was working perfectly. Jasper growled and glared at them. Garnet, Amethyst, and Pearl all stood with their weapons at the ready. Rose Quartz stood at the center of them, a determined, stoic expression in her face.

"Surrender or face the consequences!" Pearl cried, standing defensively in front of the group.

"You four? Again?!" she snapped, "What is wrong with you?! Why can't you just leave me alone?!"

"Jasper, you are a threat to this planet and it's people," Rose said, "If you come with us quietly, you may live with us in peace as our prisoner. However, if we have to take you by force, you will not be given any sort of second chance. You will remain bubbled for the rest of your days."

"I don't see much of a difference in those options," she growled. Jasper looked around. She needed a distraction to get a head start. She quickly spied a boulder and heaved it out of the ground. "Infact, I would rather DIE than be stuck with the likes of you!" she cried, tossing the large stone through the air towards Rose. Just as Garnet moved to stop it, Pearl tried to block it as well, sending them both flying back.

Jasper ran as fast as she could, forming her spin dash. At the same time she made sure to leave a good trail behind her for them to follow. She stopped in front of a rocky ledge towering above her and listened carefully. They were about a minute away. She had to work quickly. She pulled the jasper out of her pocket. Now instead of being just a large chunk, it was cut down to resemble her own gem. She crushed it in her hand and dropped the shards on the ground. She then summoned her crash helmet and slammed it against the rock wall. She jumped out of the way as the rocks fell right on the shards of jasper. She hid in the brush as she heard running and voices in the distance.

"This way!" Pearl shouted, “We can corner her up here!” The four gems ran around the bend before screeching to a halt. Looks of surprise covered their faces.

"She must have slammed into the cliff face," Garnet observed as she walked over to the rubble.

"Ha! She ran right into it! How dumb can she be?" Amethyst said as she started to move the rubble. Jasper's fists tightened as she bit back her anger. Now was not the time to lose her temper.

"Isn't this great, Rose?" Pearl said, "Now we don't have to worry about subduing her!"

Rose had a look of disappointment on her face. "I suppose so," she said, "I just wish we could have convinced her to come with us."

"Why?" Pearl questioned, "She's a brute! She has no respect for this planet! She never has and she never will!"

"You don't know that, Pearl," Rose said with a hopeful look in her eye as she looked out into the forest, "People can change. You just have to give them time." Her gaze swept over the trees. For a second Jasper could have sworn she was looking directly at her, but her eyes passed over her.

"Uh g-guys?" Amethyst called, "I don't know if we'll need to bubble Jasper..." Rose and Pearl turned their attention to the other gems. The two of them were staring in shock at something amidst the rubble.

"Why not?" Rose asked, walking over. "Because there's not much left of her to bubble..." Amethyst answered. She looked like she was going to be sick as she subconsciously covered her own gem with her hand. Pearl gasped and Rose's smile faded. There amidst the rubble were shards of an orange gem.

"She," Pearl started, "She can't be! This must be a mistake."

"Do you know of any other orange gems that would be running right through this area?" Garnet asked.

Pearl began to panic. This wasn't supposed to happen. "Rose I'm so sorry!" she said, "We didn't mean for this to happen! None of us could have predicted thi-"

As she turned to her leader, she stopped as she saw Rose's face was hidden by her curls. She walked over to the broken shards and lifted them in her hands. She said nothing as she held the broken stones, her whole figure looked solemn. She formed a bubble around the pieces of gemstone and tapped it, sending them away.

Jasper continued to watch. She wanted to leave but she couldn't look away. She couldn’t believe it. Did the Crystal Gems actually feel guilty for her? The four gems sat there in silence. After what felt like an eternity, Rose spoke.

"Gems," she said, "Go ahead and head back without me."

"You sure?" Amethyst asked.

Rose nodded. "I need some time alone," she said. Garnet nodded and she and Amethyst started walking back. "Pearl, that means you too," she said.

The smaller gem looked taken aback. "But Rose-" she started.

"Please Pearl," she said, "I'll be fine. I just need a few moments by myself." Pearl hesitated before nodding and running to catch up with the others.

A few minutes passed before Jasper got up to leave. As she did, Rose suddenly spoke. "I know you're there, Jasper," she said. Jasper froze and turned back to the large gem. "Come out," she continued, "I promise I won't hurt you."

Jasper stepped out of the brush. "Why didn't you give me away?" she asked.

"Because I want to give you a chance," she replied, getting up, "Whether you like to admit it or not, you have changed. It's been over 4000 years since the war. Although you seemed pretty dead set on it for the first few hundred, I haven't seen you trying to terrorize the people of this world in years."

Jasper shrugged. "Let's just say we've come to an agreement," she said, "They don't bother me, and I'll leave them alone."

Rose grinned warmly. “That’s still better than randomly attacking them,” she said. "If you keep it that way," Rose said, "I won't tell the others about this." She held out her hand to shake. "Do we have a deal?" she asked. Jasper shook her hand and nodded.


	12. You look familiar

Present day--America  
It had been a few months since Jasper came to live with the gems. At first, it had been....less than easy to say the least. Jasper had been stuck in that cave for a little over 200 years. The last time she saw humanity, they were still perfecting the art of gunpowder and solving arguments with brawls. Now they had fully functioning electrical grids, social media, and had at least six different cultural reforms. Adjusting had been difficult. Technology wise, she caught on pretty easily. She had, after all, originally come from a society far more advanced than earth was even at this point. Socially...not so much.  
They should have guessed that she wouldn't be able to become comfortable with her new, more "cushy" life very easily. The fact that she challenged Lars to fight out back of the Big Donut when he insulted her should have tipped them off...or when she was arrested for wrestling wild bears. Although at first she could keep her cool, it became more difficult as time progressed. As the days went by, she became more and more fidgety and irritable. She jumped at the chance of going on missions and would probably spend more time outside if she wasn't supposed to be under constant supervision after her last escapade, although Amethyst thinks that it was definitely an improvement to the beach city harbor. She felt like she was stuck inside a cage. Before she had the whole world to traverse as she pleased. Danger lurked around every corner and each day would result in some new challenge and another story to tell. She used to enjoy simply living. Now she didn't even have to try. It was only a matter of time before she snapped and really let loose her pent up aggression.  
Steven noticed this and tried brainstorm something with Connie to fix this. Where could they take her that she would get to enjoy herself and not be seen as suspicious? "I got it!" Connie finally proclaimed, "A renaissance fair!" "There's one next week not to far from here," she said, " they have all sorts of shows and performances, live jousts, and the have melee/archery tournaments people can sign up for! Plus, everyone is in costume. She can pass as someone dressed as a troll or giant!"  
"That's perfect!" Steven responded, "She'll love it!"  
And love it she did. After much pestering of Pearl to allow them to go (as well as Connie's parents), Jasper, Steven, and Connie headed to the fair, accompanied by the rest of the gems. They still had to make sure Jasper didn't do anything rash. Everything had been going smoothly. Garnet had taken the kids to some of the children's shows, Jasper had won the melee, and they all got to enjoy watching the fire jugglers and the joust. Pearl even attended the high tea with Connie and Steven.  
Then Steven decided to drag Jasper to a musical performance. "Come on, Jasper!" he said, tugging on her large hand, "It'll be fun!"  
"Fine..." she huffed as she let the small boy pull her along, "but if we miss the axe throwing competition because of this, I'm blaming you." She continued to hold a sour expression all the way to the stage where the musicians were playing.  
Then one of the musicians caught her eye. The familiar sound of lute music filled the air as she spied messy brown hair tucked under a feathered hat. Her eyes went wide and her jaw slacked, as for a second she swore she saw a long gone friend of hers. Rubbing her eyes and blinking, she felt a pang of disappointment as she took a second look. She knew it was stupid to even think for a second it could have been him. It had been hundreds of years since she saw him, even before she had been trapped in that cave. Jasper silently chastised herself. She shouldn't even be upset. He got to live a good life! Probably longer and more eventful than most others around him. Everything on this planet eventually fades away. That's just how things are.  
Steven listened to the music with a smile on his face. The light tune caused him to bounce on his heels "Jasper, isn't this great?" he said looking up at the large gem. His smile faded as he saw the look on her face. It seemed almost hollow. "Jasper?" he asked, concern written on his face, "Are you alright?"  
She snapped out of her train of thought to look down at the little half human. "Huh?" she grunted, "Uh yeah. I'm fine..."  
"Are you sure?" he pressed.  
"I'm fine!," she hissed, "I just really hate this music. Can we just go already?" Steven took her hand and they walked away from the stage.  
They were both silent for a few moments. "What's really wrong, Jasper?" Steven finally said.  
"Nothing!" she snapped, "Nothing is wrong! I just! GRR!" She let go of the boy's hand and stood there for a moment. Finally, she sighed and said, "I thought...for a moment I saw an old friend of mine on the stage...but I was wrong."  
"Who?" Steven asked, "Was it another gem?"  
Jasper shook her head. "His name was Thadius," she said, "I knew him about the time when the actual renaissance was going on. The Italian one that is. Most of Northern Europe was still dealing with the plague."  
"What happened to him?" Steven asked.  
"He was a human, what do you think happened?" she retorted. Steven looked at the ground guiltily. Jasper sighed. "Sorry," she grunted.  
"What was he like?" Steven asked.  
Jasper sat down, and thought for a moment. "He was a bit of an idiot, but he always meant well," she said, "He was very kind and considerate, and a bit of a pacifist to be honest. He was very passionate though." Steven sat down next to her. "He got over excited about a lot of things, which could be pretty annoying at times. He was pretty much helpless too. I can't tell you how many times I had to get him out of some kind of trouble," she said with a slight grin.  
"How'd you meet him?" Steven asked.  
Jasper chuckled slightly. "Oh now that was a moment to remember," she said, "So I was walking along one afternoon, minding my own business, when all of a sudden I hear this high pitched screech." "When I went to find the source of the noise, I saw him clinging to a tree branch like a scared cat, and gem beast was circling below him like a hungry animal," she continues, "the poor guy was trying to scare it away by throwing fruit from the tree at it. Like that was going to do anything."  
"After a bit of deliberation I decided to help the poor guy out," she continued, "And After I did, he practically started worshiping me!" "He got down on his knee and said, 'O, my dear savior!," Jasper quoted dramatically, "You hath just performed the bravest and kindest act anyone has ever done for me! For that, I owe you my life! Please, let me accompany you as your bard." Steven snickered a little at Jasper's theatrics. "At first I thought he was joking, so I agreed. Little did I know he was completely serious," she continued, "He started following me around everywhere. At first it was annoying, but I soon grew to enjoy his company. He was one of the most loyal humans I ever knew. Anything I face for a long time, he was right there beside me, cheering me on..."  
"I wish I could have gotten to meet him," Steven said.  
"Yeah, He would have liked you," she said turning to him. "But I don't know how much of a good thing that would have been," she said with a smirk as she pulled him under her arm and gave him a gentle noogie, "I could barely get him to give me some peace and quiet every once and awhile. I can't imagine how hard it would have been had he had another musician to play with!"  
He giggled and squirmed. "Stop it!" he cried. Jasper let him go and he sat back down. Steven glanced at his watch and frowned. "Uh oh," he said, "We missed the start of the axe throwing competition..."  
"That's alright," Jasper said with a sigh, "It probably wouldn't have been much of a competition anyways with me around. How about we find something else."  
Steven pulled out the event list from his pocket. "Ummm....," he said, "How about 'Human Battle Chess'? That sounds cool and it starts in about ten minutes."  
Jasper shrugged. "Alright," she said, getting up. she helped the boy up. "So long as it's not as boring as regular chess," she commented.


	13. Close call

A few leaves fluttered through the early autumn air as the gem and the human walked along the forest path. A light breeze passed them by leaving a slight chill in the air behind it. The human was excitedly chatting away to the large gem. "I can't wait for the harvest festivals to start up," Thadius said, "It's the best part of autumn!" "There's so many different dances," he said, "and the food is wonderful! I know you don't need to eat, but I'd certainly give the food at these celebrations a chance if I were you. The ale in the German principalities is certainly worth your time...though you probably already know that..."

As he continued to jabber away about harvest festivals, Jasper could hear other, familiar voices in the distance. She stopped and listened carefully. Thadius, still distracted by his own vocal thoughts, continued to walk for a few paces until he noticed he could no longer hear the sound of Jasper's heavy boots. He turned to look at her curiously. "Is something wrong?" he asked.

Jasper quickly shushed him as she continued to listen to the voices that were slowly growing louder. Where had she heard them before? As one of the voices with a particularly stressed tone became a bit more clear, Jasper's eyes widened. "Uh oh..." she muttered. "We need to hide," she hissed as she grabbed Thadius' arm.

"What? Why?" he asked as she pulled him into the bushes. She quickly shushed him again as four figures turned around the bend. There was a large pink haired one, a tall dark skinned one holding a pink bubble a small purple one, and a skinny pale one. All of them had some kind of stone adorning their body. "Who are they?" Thadius whispered.

"The Crystal Gems," Jasper quietly growled. The group of gems stopped in the road to converse, causing Jasper to rub her temples. Just her luck. They couldn't just leave could they?

"So they're like you? Why are you avoiding them?" Thadius questioned.

"Yes, but we aren't exactly friends. They tried to hunt me down about a thousand years ago," she explained, "I got them off my trail once, and I don't want them back on it anytime soon."

"What?!" he cried in disbelief, "Why-" Before he could finish, Jasper clasped a hand over his mouth. The Crystal Gems turned to stare at the foliage they we hiding in.

"Who's there?" Garnet called. Jasper glared at Thadius while he returned an apologetic look. The fusion began moving towards them, as she did both of them slowly began to move back. She suddenly thrust a gauntlet into the bushes. Her armored hand continued to search for them. While protecting them from being spotted, the thick brush also confined them, preventing them from escaping without detection. Jasper especially had trouble slipping away from the grabbing arm, as she could barely move without falling out of the bush. If she fought back now, she would have deal with the gems chasing her for the rest of eternity again. Garnet's hand reached for Jasper's shoulder. Jasper's eyes widened when Thadius suddenly moved in front of the gauntlet. Jasper look at the small human in surprise as Garnet gripped his shirt and pulled him out of the foliage.

"It was just a human?" Pearl stated in confusion.

"It appears so...," Garnet responded with suspicion as she held him above the ground, "Now what he was doing in there is the real question."

"Uhhh," Thadius stuttered, "Well you see..." Jasper sat there frozen. She had no idea what to do. If she moved to rescue him, she would both reveal herself and make Thadius a target. If she didn't there was a chance they would just let him go, but if they decided to check the bush again, they would both be doomed. As her mind raced, her eyes landed on the pink bubble Garnet's other hand. A grin formed on her face as an idea quickly struck her.

"Seriously, this isn't that hard. Just tell us what you were doing in there," Amethyst said, getting annoyed. Thadius really wished he had thought this through, or at least that he was a better liar. He couldn't have just let them take Jasper, but in his current situation, what he had done probably wasn't going to help much at all.

"Maybe there was someone else in there with him," Pearl suggested. She then began walking over to the shrub.

"NO DON'T!" he cried before clamping a hand over his mouth. Pearl looked at him in confusion, but soon let out a squawk of surprise as something orange jumped out of the bush and knocked her aside. The gems turned to see a giant orange wolf like creature land in the middle of the path. It had long spiraling horns on its head, red splotches on its body, and white porcupine like spikes running down its back. If one looked carefully, they could see a small orange gem sitting where it's nose should be. The creature suddenly leaped at Garnet and grabbed Thadius' shirt by its teeth before dragging him off.

The gems prepared to run after it when Rose held out a hand to stop them. "You three head back," she said, "I'll take care of this one by myself."

"But Rose!" Pearl cried, "What if you get hurt! Or your gem gets cracked! Or-"

Rose raised her hand again to silence her. A confident smile sat of their leader's face. "Pearl, I've faced armies of gems. I can handle one little corrupt gem on my own," she assured, "and if I'm not back after an hour, you can come looking for me, Alright?" Pearl still looked hesitant.

Garnet suddenly placed a hand on her shoulder. "She'll be fine, Pearl," she said, "come on, let's get this one home." She raised the hand holding the already bubbled gem. Pearl finally nodded, and the three headed back to the warp pad. Rose's smile faded once they were out of sight before she turned in the direction the monster had headed.

...

Thadius cried for help as the beast continued to drag him along. It had at least been fifteen minutes since it first grabbed him and it had not slowed its pace since. Finally it came to a stop as it looked around and perk its ears. A look of almost relief crossed its face as it dropped him. He looked up at the creature in fear before moving back quickly.

"P-please!" he begged, "don't hurt me!" The beast looked at him in confusion before rolling its eyes at him.

"Thadius, calm down," is said. It suddenly glowed white as its shape changed back to a tall, humanoid figure. The light receded and Jasper now stood in the creature's place. "It's just me!" she assured.

A look of relief flooded his face as he jumped up to hug her. "Oh thank God!" he cried, "for a second there I thought you had gone corrupt! Like the gem monsters you always fight!"

"Nope," she responded, "Just pretended. Couldn't let them know I was still around. I just hope it was good enough to fool them."

"Oh, I would say so," a voice called. The two turned to see Rose Quartz standing in front of them, a smile playing on her face. Thadius began to panic, but Jasper breathed a sigh of relief.

"It's alright," Jasper assured, "Rose Quartz isn't a threat."

Thadius gave a confused look. "She's right," Rose responded, "We have a deal so to speak: if she doesn't try to harm humanity, then I make sure my friends leave her alone. I knew she would be able to keep it, but I never expected this to happen." She glanced at Thadius before looking back to Jasper with a playful grin on her face.

"What can I say," Jasper said with a shrug, "They started to grow on me."

Rose chuckled. "I'm glad they have," she responded with an almost proud look on her face, "It's been good to see you again, but I guess I should get going. Pearl's probably already getting worried." She then turned to Thadius. "It was a pleasure to meet you," she said shaking his hand, "I don't believe I got your name though."

"My name is Thadius," he responded quietly, still a bit overwhelmed by her presence.

Rose nodded to him before glancing at Jasper and whispering to him. "You look after her, alright?" she said, "She needs you a lot more than you think. Jasper may be able to take on any foe, but I don't think she's had anyone so close to her for a long time." Thadius nodded and the giant pink-haired gem stood up. "I wish the best of luck to both of you," she said before turning to depart. Jasper nodded and Thadius gave a slight wave to the tall gem before they continued on their path.

They walked quietly for awhile before Thadius spoke. "Jasper?" he asked, "Did you...Were you a threat to humanity before?"

Jasper stopped to look at him in surprise. Where had this come from? "I-I'm sorry," he said quickly, "Forget I said anything. I was just...It's just the deal she mentioned made it sound like..."

"It's alright," she said with a sigh, "I guess you have a right to know, seeing as you've been traveling with me for so long." "The truth is, yes, a long time ago I was," she said, "I did a lot of horrible things, but I learned my lesson and over the years I've made some big changes to myself."

"Why?" he asked, "and what made you change?"

Jasper looked at the ground. It was a long story, but they had plenty of time. "Well, I guess I should start from the beginning. You better listen up though, because I'm not repeating anything" she said as she started walking again, "About 6000 years ago, gems first came to Earth..."


	14. Pericaught

Present Day, Beach City  
"She's at it again!" Pearl cried as she rushed past Jasper who was currently lounging on the couch. Jasper turned her head to see the crystal gems gathering around a large spherical object sitting in the room. They had explained to her not long after finding her what it was for. Three gems had crash landed on earth recently One of them, a peridot, had used an escape pod. The Crystal Gems had found said escape pod and were currently using it to track her down.  
Pearl had opened up a map to show which warp pad she had used as Jasper glanced at it, she could see it was somewhere in East Europe."What are we waiting for? Let's go find her!" Steven cried as he ran for the warp pad. Jasper herself started to get up. Like heck she was going to miss an opportunity like this. She had yet to meet this gem, though she sounded like less of an actual threat and more of an annoyance.  
She stopped however, as Garnet picked up the boy mid run. "Hold on Steven," she said, "First we need to think of a plan." "Peridot has been avoiding using the warp system for a while, and we don't know why," she continued, "The last time we faced her, she lead us into a trap. I wouldn't be surprised if this was another one."  
"Garnet's right," Pearl said, "We need to be one step ahead of her before we go after her."  
"Maybe we she should wait to go after her!" she exclaimed, "We'll let her lower her guard and then strike-"  
"Yeah, but what if this isn't a trap, and Peridot's just really desperate for something that happens to be over there," Amethyst interrupted, "What if she finds some old gem super weapon and decides to blow us off the map? If we wait too long, we might miss her!"  
The gems bickered over the subject for a few more minutes until Jasper finally spoke up. "I have an idea," she announced. The gems all turned towards where she had stood up next to the couch. "But if it works, you have to let me roam beach city freely again," She continued with a smirk.  
Pearl and Amethyst shared a look before turning towards Garnet. Garnet appeared to think for a second before nodding. "Fine. What is it?" Pearl asked. A wicked grin formed on Jasper's face.  
.......  
A little while later, Somewhere in Poland  
A slight breeze blew threw the pine forest. Peridot heard approaching footsteps from her place behind a rock wall. It was the only noise aside from the call of flying earth creatures in the distance. She could only hear one pair of footsteps, and they were heavy at that. It must have been the fusion that had gone after her this time.  
As the sound was almost upon her, she hear the owner of the stomping release the net trap she had planted. It was a bit rudimentary, but she was desperate and had little to work with. A sly grin crossed her face as she jumped out from behind the rock face triumphantly, brandishing her laser. "Ha! I've got you now, Crystal-" she began but stopped short. Her face metamorphosed from one of smugness to surprise. It wasn't one of the crystal gems caught in her trap. It wasn't even a lost human. It was a very irritated and unamused Jasper. Judging from the placement of the diamond on her uniform, she was pretty high up in military status too.  
The Jasper glared at her from her uncomfortable position inside the net. Peridot gulped and chuckled nervously. "Heh heh...Woops!" she said, "I didn't mean...this wasn't meant for..."  
The gem trapped inside her net only continued to glare daggers at her. "You better have a good explanation for this, or I'll crush your gem beneath my boot," she growled.  
"I-I'm so sorry!" Peridot stuttered as she hastily cut the larger gem down. "You see, there are these rebel gems here on earth, and they've been chasing me down and destroying any chance I've had of getting off this planet," she explained, "Infact, they're the whole reason why I'm stuck here in the first place! I tried to trap one of them with the net but..." Peridot stopped and thought for a second. "Wait a minute, what are you doing here?" she questioned, "You weren't on my ship. It was only my escort, my informant, and myself."  
Jasper cocked an eyebrow. "Has this planet's atmosphere been messing with your memory?" she retorted, "Homeworld received a distress signal from earth and sent a rescue party. You were the one who sent it, correct?"  
Peridot's eyes lit up. "Yes! Thank the stars!" she exclaimed, "You don't know how long I've been waiting for a response! I had almost given up hope!"  
Jasper looked at her stoically. "Before we return to the ship," she continued, "I need a report on the status of the two gems that were with you."  
"Ah yes...," Peridot said scratching the back of her head, "I'm afraid I do not know their current location. I used an escape pod to land on this planet safely. I lost contact with them at that point."  
"Great..." Jasper sighed, "Very well. We'll just have to find them ourselves." "Come along, comrade," she commanded as she began to walk back to the warp pad.  
"What did you say?" Peridot asked in confusion.  
Jasper silently swore, though her expression didn't change. Turns out she was just as outdated in gem culture as she was for human culture. "What, did you not hear me? I said come on!" she snarled. Hopefully the green gem would be too frightened to question her further.  
"Eep!" she cried, "I mean, Yes Ma'am!" The gem quickly limped after her.  
It was then that Jasper noticed she only had one foot. She thought that that peridot looked too tall. Most of the ones she knew during the war were much shorter and had regular hands. This one must be wearing some kind of prosthetics.  
"Care to explain happened to your foot?" she asked, not giving up her cold act.  
"The rebels took it!" she griped, "It doesn't matter though. They'll get theirs when the cluster finally emerges."  
Jasper raised an eyebrow. Cluster? What could that be? The Crystal Gems had told her about the fusion experiments. Could this be one of them?  
"Speaking of emerging, how have the fusion experiments been coming along?" she asked.  
Peridot gave her a puzzled expression. "Shouldn't you already know? I've been sending reports in," she asked with slight suspicion. Surely if homeworld had gotten her distress signal, they must have also received her log reports.  
Jasper stopped. "Do you dare talk back to your superior?!" she barked.  
The green gem yelped. "No ma'am!" she quipped. Jasper had to keep herself from smirking. She was enjoying this way too much. It had been a long time since she had gotten to play general.  
"The report then," she ordered.  
"The fusion experiments are all developing properly. Some have emerged early. Although I do not have a direct calculation of when, the cluster is sure to emerge some time soon. Hopefully, we'll be off this miserable mud ball long before then," Peridot stated.  
Whatever this cluster was, Jasper didn't like the sound of it. Hopefully they'll be able to get more information out of her later. Finally they approached the warp pad. "We could not land the ship near this area, so we'll have to return to it using this," Jasper explained.  
The two hopped on the crystal circle. The blue light surrounded them as they began to float. Peridot closed her eyes and sighed. No more stupid earthlings, no more crazy terrain, and no more crystal clods. She was finally going home. When gravity returned she opened her eyes, expecting to see a large space cruiser before her. Her face melted into confusion as instead, she was in some kind of room made of organic material. It then morphed into shock and horror as she noticed the four other beings in the room were none other than the Crystal Gems.  
"Good morning!" Steven greeted cheerfully as the others readied their weapons.  
Peridot felt someone grip her arms and pull them behind her back. She turned her head to see Jasper smirking. No longer was she adorned in homeworld attire, but a fur cloak and antique earth uniform. "What's the matter, comrade?" she sneered.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know I promised three Thadius chapters in a row, but a couple of things changed that plan. First, I lost the outlines I had for what would have been the next two chapters. Then the past two episodes came out and I wanted to write something with peridot. Next one should be a Thadius chapter, and then I'll do random time period chapter.


	15. Kindergarten

Jasper ran as fast as she could, Thadius tucked under her arm. An angry mob of guards charged after them. Jasper would be lying if she said this was the first time this had happened."I can't believe you just beat the crap out of someone!" Thadius cried, annoyed more than scared.  
"That's a lie and you know it," she retorted, "Besides, he was a pardoner. He deserved it."  
"Why?!" he questioned.  
"Did you not hear what I said? He was a PARDONER!" Jasper argued, "They're the scum of the earth."  
"True...but they're still people," Thadius continued, "You can't just attack one whenever you want."  
"Really? I thought they were leeches," she said with a smirk. Thadius chuckled slightly.  
The mob was starting to lag behind them, but Jasper didn't slow down. She saw the warp pad they came from in the distance and increased her pace. "How about some where in the South Pacific next?" she commented as she set him down on its smooth surface.  
"Perfect!" Thadius responded with a grin. With that, Jasper activated the warp pad, leaving the armed men behind them with a chime.  
The two of them flew through one of the many light blue streams in the warp system. She grinned as she looked down at her human companion, who was enjoying the weightless feeling of warping. A content smile crossed his face as his eyes were closed. Humans could find enjoyment in the simplest of things....  
Her grin faded, however, as she thought she saw something outside the stream in the corner of her eye. She stuck her head outside the light of their warp tunnel and saw a feminine figure flying through a nearby stream. She her eyes grew wide in surprise and her breath hitched in her throat. At first she thought it was one of the Crystal Gems. Then she realized its shape was unlike any of Rose's companions.  
Just before they landed, she noticed where that particular beam was headed.  
The pair landed on another crystal circle surrounded by a light, sandy beach. Blue waves lapped at the shores and gulls called in the distance. "Nice choice, Jasper!" Thadius commented, "This place is absolutely beautiful!"  
"I'm afraid we can't stay," she responded.  
Thadius turned to her in confusion. "Why? You didn't leave anything behind, did you?" he asked.  
"No, but I saw something in the warp stream," she explained, "There's something here on earth that isn't supposed to be, and based on where it was headed, whatever it is can't be good."  
"Where was it headed?" Thadius asked in concern.  
"The Kindergarten," she stated with a serious tone.  
....  
The two landed in the misty canyon. It was utterly bleak and lifeless. The rock face of the cliffs were ominous on their own. It didn't help that there were huge metal contraptions clinging to the walls. Large holes covered the sides of the cliffs in many uniform rows.  
"This foul place is where gems came to be?" Thadius asked in disbelief, glancing up at his surroundings. How could anyplace this dark and decrepit be the source of any kind of life.  
"What did you expect, The Garden of Eda?" Jasper retorted.  
"It's 'Garden of Eden'," Thadius corrected, "And no, but I certainly wasn't expecting this."  
"Well sorry to disappoint, but yes, this is where gems come from," she explained, "or where they used to come from, anyways. This place has been long since abandoned and for good reason. If it wasn't, you wouldn't be around to realise it."  
"Do you think whoever...or whatever it was that came here might be trying to start it up again?" Thadius asked nervously, "Is that why we're here? To stop them?"  
"Mmhmm," she responded with a nod. To be honest, that wasn't her only reason for wanting to see what was going on. She could probably have just left it alone and let the Crystal Gems take care of it. Part of her wanted to see if there was another gem that had been left stranded here. As nice of company Thadius and a few other humans could be, the fact still remained that the only others left of her kind on earth were either corrupt, mindless beasts or were still technically her enemies. That wasn't exactly a comforting thought.  
They walked for over a half an hour, searching for whatever it was in the warp stream. They almost finished circling back to where they came from when Thadius spoke up. "Are you sure this is where the creature in the warp landed?" he sighed, "We've looked everywhere and haven't seen hide nor hair of anything!"  
"Yes I'm sure," she insisted, "I know I saw something. Where could it have gone?"  
"Maybe it's already left," he reasoned, "I know if it were me, I'd want to get out of a place like this as soon as possible."  
Jasper sighed. Although she hated to admit it, he was probably right. They had searched the whole area. If there was anything here, it was long gone by now. "Fine, we'll head back to the island," she relented.  
The two began walking back to the warp pad. As they were about to round a corner, however, Jasper heard a voice.  
"Yes my liege. Everything has been put into place for now, though routine check ups may be necessary." Jasper held out a hand to stop Thadius. As he gave her a confused look, she motioned him to wait as she carefully peaked around the corner.  
A few yards away, she saw a Jade. Its green coloration and flowing form were unmistakable. It was lithe with long, dark hair. On its attire was a large yellow diamond shape. The gem was speaking to someone on some kind of holographic communication device projecting from within her hands. Jasper's eyes widened slightly as she recognized the person she was talking too. Even after all these years, how could she forget that face?  
"Well done. Now return to the warp station for your next assignment," the cool, icy voice on the other end replied.  
"Yes, Yellow Diamond," the Jade replied with a bow before closing the communication device.  
The Jade began walking towards the warp pad when something suddenly grabbed her shoulder.  
She was forcefully turned around to see Jasper glaring down at her.  
"What the heck do you think you're doing here?" she growled.  
"Another gem?" the Jade stuttered, "but I was informed that this planet was not fit for colonization!"  
Jasper raised an eyebrow. "If this wasn't fit for colonization then why did the diamonds fight so hard to keep it?" she questioned.  
"Huh? What's that supposed to mean?" the smaller gem asked.  
"I mean the war that was fought here over 5000 years ago!"Jasper growled, "I'm pretty sure if they thought this planet was that useless they wouldn't have spent 500 years fighting for it. What, were you just harvested yesterday or something?"  
The Jade stared at her like she had grown a second head. "There was never a gem war for Earth," she explained slowly, "There is no record of any wars, won or lost, anywhere near this star system."  
Jasper's eyes widened in shock. They just brushed it under the rug. Five hundred years of vicious battle. Thousands of loyal gems, corrupted and destroyed. All of it swept aside to ignore a single failure. Her friends, her sisters in arms: their sacrifices were made completely worthless! Jasper's blood boiled in rage as her fists tightened.  
"Your time here must have left you confused," the Jade simply stated, oblivious to Jasper's death stare, "The atmosphere might have had an effect on your mentality over time. If you come with me, we can get you rehabili-" Before she could finish, Jasper had pulled out her battle axe and swung it at the slim green gem.  
Jade yelped before dodging at the last minute. "Wha-What are you doing?!" she exclaimed. Jasper didn't answer as she continued her blind rage. The small gem rolled out of the way, before summoning her own weapon: two fan blades. "Stay back, you heathen!" she cried. She flung the blades at larger gem, to which Jasper batted them out of the air with her large weapon.  
She then charged at the green gem, knocking her to the ground. Jasper pressed her boot down onto the smaller gem. Jade squirmed underneath her foot, desperate to escape. She raised her axe, ready to strike as she stared at the gem's stone.  
"Jasper stop!" Thadius cried. Jasper's axe halted mid swing. She turned to the small human huffing, and glowering at him. If looks could kill, Thadius would have been incinerated on the spot.  
"WHY SHOULD I?!" she shouted.  
Thadius visibly flinched and backed up slightly. "You were going to kill her," he said after mustering up a bit of courage, "I can't let you do that."  
"Why?! You didn't seem to care what I did to all those corrupt gems!" she snarled back.  
"They were senseless beasts and were attacking the innocent," he reasoned, "She has a conscience! She can reason, and so far I haven't seen her do almost anything against you. This isn't defending the Earth, this is murder!"  
Jasper was speechless as Thadius' words resonated with her. What the heck WAS she doing?She nearly killed someone in cold blood over something that barely related to them. Her grip on her axe loosened and it fell to her side as the pressure of her foot on the smaller gem's chest weakened.  
"Thadius, I-" she started, when a stinging pain shot through her leg. She lifted it with a hiss, and noticed a deep slash through it. The Jade was now scampering away to the warp pad, fan blade in hand.  
Jasper growled and ran after her. "Jasper! Don't do it!" Thadius cried as he ran after her.  
"Not killing her, promise! That doesn't mean I'm not leaving her in stitches!" she called. The Jade activated the warp pad, sending her away. Jasper and Thadius managed jump into the stream before it dissipated.  
As soon as the Jade touched down on the warp pad to the galaxy warp, she made a break for the homeworld warp. Jasper and Thadius warped in just in time to see her escape. Jasper growled and clenched her fist...but then gave a sigh and relaxed it again. She was just about to activate the warp pad to leave when Thadius spoke up.  
"What is this place?" he asked. He had never seen so many warp pads in one place before.  
It was then that Jasper took a good look around her and fully realised where exactly they were. This was a galaxy warp. She had seen one of these before but she had no idea earth had one. She had come to the planet by ship. Now she felt like an idiot. She could have left at any point in time, yet she had stayed on Earth for thousands of years. All of the warp pads were in perfect condition.  
Jasper approached the largest one: the Homeworld Warp. If she wanted to go home, she could do so right now...  
"Jasper?" Thadius called with worry as his friend stood transfixed by the largest of the warp pads. She said nothing, but placed her hand on the crystalline surface. Before Thadius could speak further, the hand raised again, clenched into a fist, and came down with a resounding "CRACK". A deep schism formed along the once smooth surface.  
She then turned to the other warp pads and one by one began attacking them as well, swing her axe and slamming down her fists into each one. "What on Earth are you doing?!" Thadius cried.  
"Making sure they can't come back!" she growled as she summoned her helm to smash the last one. She panted for a few seconds as the dust settled. The only warp left undamaged was the one they came from.  
"Come on," she said stoically, "Let's go." Thadius hesitated before getting up on the warp pad with her.  
There was a long pause as Jasper didn't move to activate the pad. "I...apologize," she finally spoke, "for my behavior today. I wish you didn't have to see me like that."  
Thadius gave a dry laugh. "It was a good thing that I did though," he murmured, "Who knows what you would have done if I hadn't stepped in." Jasper nodded absentmindedly, activating the warp. They were both silent as they traveled through the warp system. They landed again on the light sandy beach of the Southern Pacific Island.  
"Still up for this, or do you want to go somewhere else?" she asked, glancing down at her companion.  
Thadius nodded with a smile but it quickly changed back to a worried look. "Jasper?" he asked, "Are you alright?"  
"Honestly?" she responded, "I think I'm better off now than I was before."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well this got dark. Looks like Jasper's broken all ties with homeworld. Btw a pardoner was a seller of indulgences, these little worthless pieces of paper that they convinced people would give them or a loved one (living or dead) salvation if they buy them. They'd use scare tactics in the form of sermons like from "the pardoner's tale" in the Canterbury Tales to get people to buy more and sometimes would scam local priests by selling them fake relics(sacred objects that made churches seem more important or could even make a site one of pilgrimage). Yeah, they just weren't good people.  
> Anyways, I don't know when the next chapter will be up but I hope you enjoyed this!


	16. Broken

1700 B.C. China

Jasper limped along the forest path, each step resulting in pain. She knew this would happen eventually. She didn’t realized how drawn out it would be. A few days ago, she had cracked her gem escaping from what was left of Rose’s army. Since then it had only gotten worse and worse. She trudged along the worn dirt path. It was obvious from the rut marks that humans would used it pretty often and that she had a high chance of meeting one. She was in no condition to fight anyone but couldn't care less at this point as she was most likely going to die anyways. To be honest, the situation couldn't get much more hopeless.  
As Jasper took her next step, her projection suddenly spasmed and her legs gave out underneath her. She fell onto her stomach with a thud, luckily not damaging her gem any further. She groaned as she attempted to get back up but failed again. The pain in her gem got even worse. She rolled over onto her back and quickly found out what had happened: her legs had been replaced with an extra set of arms. Jasper ran a hand over her face in resignation. This was how it was going to end, wasn't it? She was going to die alone in a forest, many light years away from home. She wasn't going to even get an honorable death in battle. Instead she was going to die a coward’s death: succumbing to the wounds of a battle she fled.  
Another spasm overtook her. When it had finished, there was a ringing in her ears and her vision had become blurred. She closed her eyes and layer her head down on the ground. As she waited for her gem to finally split in two, she could faintly hear the noisy jangling of a peddler’s cart approaching.  
….  
Hong-li had been returning home from selling his wares of terracotta pots and bowls when he had stumbled upon the most extraordinary thing. Some sort of mystical being was lying on the side of the road. It was feminine in shape, and had long flowing hair. It had two pairs of arms and was bright orange with red stripes. Instead of a nose, it had some sort of gemstone. As he got a closer look, he could see the stone was damaged, with a deep crack running through it’s smooth surface.  
At first, the spirit did not move, and he was worried that he had come acrossed it too late. As he got closer to it, the being’s eyes opened slowly. Two golden, cat-like spheres glared up at him as they tried to focus. With whatever strength the creature had left, it tried to swing at him with its large hands. Its current state had left it slow and weak, making the blow easily avoidable. The creature panted, holding itself up on its elbows as it glared at him. It snarled something that sound like some kind of warning, but her couldn't understand a word of her foreign tongue.  
Before it could do anything else, it suddenly spasmed, form almost dissipating before it slumped to the ground with a groan. Hong-li slowly approached the now motionless form. When it did nothing, he tapped its arm with his toe. It barely twitched in response. Hong-li breathed a sigh of relief and began walking back to his cart and oxen. Just as he grabbed the lead rope, he paused and turned back to the motionless form. The artisan bit his lip as he felt a pang of guilt and pity for the large spirit. With a sigh he walked back over to the figure, turned it over, and dragged it back to his cart. After much heaving and pushing, he managed to get most of the large gem inside of the cart. It lower body still stuck out at an odd angle, but he didn't want to hurt the creature. Once he determined that she would not fall out, he grabbed the rope lead again and headed home.  
(Later)  
While getting the spirit out of the cart was not too difficult, getting her into his house was. When he finally fit the unconscious body through the door, he rolled her onto a mat and pulled a blanket over her. He took a good look at the gemstone on the creature’s face to make sure it had not received anymore damage. While he was relieved to find it had not, he quickly realized he had no idea how to take care of his patient and began to panic. Did he bring her herbs? Did she need a bandage? Should he give her tea? What was someone supposed to do to heal a spirit?  
Hong-li bit his thumb as he rattled his brain for an idea. When one finally came to mind, he snapped his fingers. “Wait right here,” he told the unconscious creature. He ran to his room and flung open a small cabinet. Within that was a small chest. He pulled out a key that hung from around his neck and unlocked it, revealing one of his most prized possessions: a small flask of what appeared to be water.  
It had belonged to his mother. She had been gifted it when a mysterious spirit had found her after she had nearly been killed by a wild boar. The spirit had healed her with its tears and then given her this bottle. She had been told it could heal almost anything. He hoped those words rang true as he grabbed the bottle and sprinted back to his dying patient. When he returned, he removed the stopper and held the bottle over her face, gently tipping it until a little spilled over onto the gem. It seped into the deep crevice, and for a moment, nothing happened.  
Then, the stone suddenly began to glow. Hong-li’s eyes widened as the seam melted. her body began to change as well, as the hands on the lower portion of her body turned into boot covered feet. The gem stirred slightly, eyes opening for a second before closing again. Hong-li smiled before getting up and heading towards his stove. ‘Maybe the spirit will want something to eat. To be honest, I’m a bit hungry too,’ He thought as he put a pot on top of the iron stove. He set some firewood inside it before going back to his cart to grab the vegetables he had gotten today. Hopefully the giant hadn’t accidentally crushed them.  
(Later)  
Jasper opened her eyes groggily. She quickly noticed that the pain in her gem was gone. Was she just so far gone now that she couldn't even feel pain anymore. That would be nice if it was the case. The next thing she noticed was that she was no longer in the forest. She shot up, causing the blanket to fall off of her as she looked around. She was inside some kind of human dwelling. She wracked her brain to think of how this could have happened. The last thing she remembered was telling that human in the cart to buzz off. She growled and pinched the space just above her gem. He must have been the idiot to bring her here. When she saw him, she was going to make him regret ever meeting her...if she even had the strength to. She was still technically dying...or so she thought.  
As she ran her hand down her face in defeat, she noticed something: her gem was completely smooth. Her breath hitched and her eyes went wide as she went to check again. Indeed, there was not a single divot in its surface. How was this possible? Had the human...healed her gem? How?! And for that matter, why?! She had been terrorizing his kind for thousands of years, shouldn't he have realised she was dangerous?!  
Just then she heard footsteps. She turned to see the human from before in the doorway. his dark hir was tied up into a tight bun and he was covered in some kind of heavy garment. He wore a calm smile as he padded over to her, carrying a tray with two bowls of something hot. He said something, but she couldn’t understand a lick of what he said. It sounded like a greeting of some kind. He set the tray down in front of her before sitting himself. He said something again, but again she couldn't understand anything. It was a little frustrating. Maybe learning a human language or two wouldn’t be such a bad idea...She quickly banished the thought however. Humans were stupid, worthless little creatures. Learning their language would be a waste of her time, even if she was stuck here.  
Speaking of which, the small, hairless ape broke her train of thought by offering her one of the bowls and a pair of utensils. She raised an eyebrow at it before tentatively taking it. She knew what eating was, but she hadn’t really tried it. Her lack of need of it and distain for all things human had kept her from trying. She looked from the bowl of noodles and cooked vegetables then back up to the human who was currently ingesting his own. Jasper sniffed the bowl. She knew it couldn’t kill her, and as much as she hated to admit it, this creature had saved her life. The least she could do was humor it.  
Deciding not to bother with the utensils she picked up one of the noodles and dropped it in her mouth. Her eyes grew wide at the sensation. It was like nothing she had ever experienced before. It was warm and soft and a bit slimy, but had a strange bitter-sweet tang to it she could not describe. She looked from the bowl to the human and back in surprise before shee began to scarf it down. Meanwhile, the human looked upon her with pride. As she slurped down the rest of the broth, she couldn’t help but think about how she might be wrong about these creatures. Maybe they weren't as horrible or stupid as she thought. Maybe..being stuck here wasn’t so bad after all… Well it was still bad but maybe not quite as much as before.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey sorry this took so long. Hope you guys enjoy it!


	17. The King and I

Jasper’s eye twitched slightly. Most people would probably jump at the opportunity to be in her position but she hated this. She hated it so, so much. The costume of a dress she was stuffed into was beyond stiff and uncomfortable. The corset was so tight she could barely move. Thank whatever deity there was that she didn't have to breath, but curse them as well for putting her into this situation. This is what she got for being nice.   
This had all started when she and Thadius were tracking down a gem monster. When they found it, it was attacking a group of French royal guards and a carriage. While the guards fought bravely, there was nothing they could do to stop it. When Jasper and Thadius came onto the scene, they quickly did away with the the beast. The men rejoiced at their rescue, and the duo were more than glad to have helped. However they didn’t know that they had also saved the King of France: Louie something or the other. Jasper didn’t remember nor care. In her opinion there were too many Louies to keep track of. As a sign of gratitude for being rescued, he had invited the both of them to Louvre Palace for dinner. Jasper was going to say no...but then Thadius looked at her with those big brown eyes…and now she was here, sitting at the table with his royal pompousness.  
She leaned over to Thadius who was sitting next to her and grinning nervously. “I blame you for this,” she hissed at him.   
“I know,” he whispered, forcing a smile, “I’m sorry, I’ve just never had the chance to experience how royalty live!” He squirmed in his seat slightly. “I’m kind of regretting this to be honest,” he said.  
“Well so am I,” she growled under breath, adjusting the fru-fru pastel dress she had been forced into. She could barely sit in the puffy thing. It had to have been at least a size too small. The king had decided that the “poor helpless peasants who had saved them” needed proper clothing before they ate and had them stuffed into what must have been the most uncomfortable clothing he could have found for them. Jasper was going to object until Thadius reminded her that it would be a bad idea to anger a king, especially in his own home.  
“Look at it this way,” he whispered, “At least we’re going to get a free meal. We’ll literally be eating like kings.” Jasper smiled a little at that.  
King Louie sat across from the two of them at the head of the table, the queen at his side. “I am so pleased that you accepted my offer of dinner,” he said, “I have never had the pleasure of dining with a magical creature. What manner of beast are you? A giant? A golem? A troll?”  
Thadius flinched as Jasper’s fist clenched on her chair. “I’m a GEM,” she bit out.  
“And what is a gem?” he asked, oblivious to her building aggression.  
“A gem is a gem,” she explained in an annoyed tone, “I am a living, anthropomorphic gemstone. Specifically, I’m a jasper stone.”   
“Interesting!” he said with a nod, “I never heard of a stone called jasper before. I guess that’s where the name comes from.”  
Jasper rolled her eyes at him. “Yes, that’s where the name comes from,” she spat. Thadius nudged her elbow and shook her head.  
“Are there different kinds of these gems? Like emeralds or pearl?” the queen asked.  
“Oh yes, I would love to meet a diamond if possible!” the King said with a smile.  
Thadius tugged at his collar awkwardly while Jasper pinched the bridge of her gem at that statement. “trust me, you don’t,” she said with a sigh, “They’re...less than pleasant.”  
The king and queen looked at them in confusion. Before they could ask anything further on the subject, the servers arrived with the food.   
Jasper had to admit. It looked gorgeous. If anyone asked her if food could be art, she would point them to this. However, when it was set down in front of her, she noticed something else: as beautiful as it was, it was also very small. Granted, she probably couldn’t eat a larger portion with the currently restrictive clothing she was wearing. She poked at a piece of meat with her fork before sticking it into her mouth...It was not what she expected. It wasn’t horrible by any means, but it certainly wasn’t what she had expected. It just wasn’t nearly as strong as any German or Italian or any other food she had tried. Her brow furrowed as she took another bite from the foreign food, getting a little more used to the flavor. She turned to look at Thadius and the Italian man seemed to have a similar reaction.  
“Is there something wrong?” the king asked.  
“Oh no!” Thadius immediately responded, “We just...haven’t had anything like this before.”  
“No?!” the king said in shock, “How did you live like that?! I can’t even imagine what kind of mush you must have been eating instead!”  
Thadius’s smile became a thin line. “With all due respect, Sire,” he started, “my mother was a wonderful cook and she could do a lot with the very little we ha-”  
“Oh I know what I forgot!” he interrupted, “How foolish of me! I apologize, but I hadn’t asked the servants to bring you drinks!” He immediately called a servant over to the table.  
Jasper began to smile. At least she knew this would be good. She could only imagine what kind of drinks the king of France could have. Beer, rum, brandy, scotch...she loved all of them.  
She smiled as she saw the servants come to the table with glasses and bottles. Her smile faded however, when she saw the fizzy drink they were pouring into the glass. Just her luck. The one drink she could actually say she loathed.  
“Only the finest champagne for my gue-”  
“That’s it,” she getting up, “I’m done with this.” She kicked off the shoes she had been forced into and stretched, tearing many of the restrictive seams of the dress. The king and queen gasped at this. She ignored them and picked up her friend by the waist. “Come on Thadius,” she said, “We’re leaving.”  
“Jasper!” he protested weakly. “I’m sorry about her. She does this a lot,” he called back to the royals, “Thanks for the meal!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For anyone who's wondering why Jasper hates champagne, some champagne have a particular quality to them that can irritate people with sensitive sinuses and noses. Seeing as her nose literally is her gem, my head cannon is that she's extremely sensitive to things like that.


	18. Krampus

Johanah skipped through the snow laden woods as she headed back home in her deerskin coat and boots. She had spent several hours gathering chestnuts and carefully removing them from their spiny casings. Now she had a sack full of them to give to her mother for roasting. She could almost smell the warm familiar scent it even now and a smile graced her face.  
As she continued on her way, she heard a noise from behind her. She stopped an looked around, but saw nothing. Carefully, she continued on. After a few more steps she heard the noise again followed by some snickering. “Hello?” she called, clutching her sack close to her chest. The woods were once again silent.  
Then, all of a sudden two figures jumped out at her making loud noises, causing her scream. The two laughed as the little girl quaked in her boots. When she finally looked up, she saw that it was only Rhoderick and William from the nearby village. She glared at the two older boys and her cheeks became flushed as they continued to laugh at her. “It’s not funny!” she shouted.  
“Oh it most certainly was!” William said wiping a tear from his eyes, “You should have seen the look on your face!”  
“Ja!” Rhoderick agreed, “You jumped about ten feet! It was hilarious!” “Hey! what have you got there?” he continued, grabbing the bag of chestnuts.  
“Hey!” she snapped at them, “Give that back! It’s not yours!”  
“If you want them back,” Rhoderick started before tossing the bag to William, “you’ll have to take it from us!”  
(Meanwhile)  
Jasper bent down to pick up more of the fallen sticks and branches from the snow covered ground and stuffed them into a bag. She and Thadius had been camping in the area for a few days. The poor boy had fallen ill and they had to stop for a few days. Jasper was currently gathering kindling to keep her human companion warm.  
As she gathered a few more branches, she heard some sort of shouting coming from over next hill. She raised her eyebrow and started heading up to investigate.  
(meanwhile)  
“Stooop!” Johanah whined as the two boys tossed the bag of chestnuts over her head, “Give them back now!”  
“Or what?” William sneered.  
“Or the Krampus will come to get you for being mean and gobble you up!” she warned.  
The two boys looked at each other before falling over with laughter. “You can’t be serious, can you?!” Rohderick wheezed.  
“I’m dead serious!” she said, “You better stop this right now, or come Christmas, the Krampus will come with his bundle of switches and take you away!”  
“The Krampus isn’t real!” William dismissed, “It’s just a story parents tell little kids to get them to behave.”  
“He is too real!” she shot back with a scowl, “Now give me back my stuff!” she jumped up to try to get her sack back. The two boy continued to tease her, but little did they know, something was watching them.  
“Hey!” a voice called, grabbing their attention. The three children turned to see a tall figure standing before them. It was a giant orange being stripped with red. It had a mane of white hair and some kind of a stone in the center of its face. Its golden eyes were narrowed at them. Its muscular arms were crossed, and slung over its back was a sack full of switches. “What the heck is going here?” The creature demanded.  
The boys were now shaking as their face grew pale. Their jaws slackened and William dropped the bag of chestnuts. Johanah on the other hand, had a big smile stretching across her face.  
Jasper began tapping her foot in annoyance. “Well,” she asked, “Is someone going to explain, or am I-”  
“THE KRAMPUS IS REAL!” the boys screamed her before running off.  
The little girl picked up her bag and chasing after them shouting, “I told you! I told you he was real!”  
Jasper stood there for a moment in confusion. What the heck just happened?! Jasper shook her head before turning and heading back to the campsite.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Decided to get in the christmas spirit, so here you go! Fo those who don't know what the Krampus is, he's a kind of antiSanta. Instead of having Santa give coal to naughty kids, in german folk tales the Krampus would come and take kids away in his bundle of switches (sticks). What he did with them depend on the tale you hear. Some say he eats them, some say he puts them to work, and some say he just spanks them.  
> Anyways Hope you guys liked this story, et me know what you think!


	19. Sick

Jasper squeezed through the hole of the small cave she had discovered. A fire crackled in the center, and small figure was huddled in the corner in a heavy animal skin. After throwing a bit more kindling on the fire, the large gem crouched down as she moved towards the huddled form carefully.  
As she place a hand on the figure’s shoulder, it devolved into violent coughing. She flinched slightly at the sudden respiratory spasms but kept a steady hand on his shoulder. “I don’t suppose you’re feeling any better, huh?” she said.  
“A little, I think,” he croaked with a smile, “I’m just really cold right now.”  
“You’re sitting right next to a fire,” she stated frankly, “You can’t get much warmer than that. Unless you want me to take you to the sun, which I can safely say would be a horrible idea.”  
“Sorry, I guess I’m just being finicky today,” he said, before coughing again, “I think I just need a little more rest.”  
“Sounds like a plan to me,” she replied, “I’m sure you’ll feel better after a bit more sleep. Then we can head out and find some nice tropical island to stay on or something. Remember the one with the giant geodes? I know you thought those fish with the giant noses were hilarious.”  
Thadius snickered at that. “Yeah, it almost looked like they had tiny mustaches too,” he remembered. “That would be nice...yeah just need some sleep,” he yawned before letting his eyelids slip closed again. Jasper patted his shoulder lightly before turning to look through her supplies. One of the hardest parts about taking care of him was making sure he had food. He needed something to fight back whatever this was. She needed to find something for him to eat, and something he could keep down at that. Unfortunately, they mostly only had dried meat. Not only did it not do much good to combat illness, but it would certainly be too much for his stomach to handle.  
As she continued to look, she found a bundle of noodles at the bottom of her sack. as she examined it a little more, an idea came to mind. The was a warp pad about a thirty minutes walk away from here. While Thadius was in no state to be even carried that far, she could handle it no problem. She could go and get the ingredients she needed and be back before he even woke up. She quickly got up and slung a sack over her shoulder before heading back out into the cold.  
Thadius’ eyes slowly cracked open as a particular scent wafted through the air. He lifted his head slightly to see Jasper crouching over a bubbling pot. she stirred it with a crudely carved spoon. “Mornin’, Sleeping Beauty. How was your nap?” she said, not even looking up.  
“Alright,” he said, “I think I’m feeling a little better.” He tried to sit up, but started coughing again and lied back down.  
“I think your lungs are saying otherwise,” she said with a smirk. Despite the amusement in her voice, that little bout had only made her more concerned.  
“How long was I asleep for?” he asked.  
“A couple hours,” she said, “long enough for me to make this for you.” She began pouring him a bowl by grabbing the edge of the hot pot and tipping it slightly, not even flinching at the searing metal.  
“I didn’t know you could do that,” he said as she moved over towards him.  
“Really? I swear you’ve seen me handle hot irons before,” she said, helping him sit up. As she did so, he was careful to make sure the fur blanket was wrapped all the way around him, even covering his head.  
“No I didn’t know you could cook,” he said.  
She gave him a wry grin. “I’ve been on earth for thousands of year, and you never considered that I would have learned how to make something to eat?” she questioned.  
“Well you don’t exactly need to eat so…” he reasoned.  
“Yeah but I still enjoy it,” she said setting the bowl of noodles in vegetable broth in his lap. “Be careful. It’s hot,” she warned.  
“I’ll wait for it to get colder. I’m not really hungry,” he muttered.  
“You haven’t eaten all day,” she pointed out, “You need something in your system or you’re going to collapse or worse.”  
“Alright, just give me a minute,” he replied. He sat in silence for a little while. Jasper watched him carefully as he started eating. Once he was finished, he set the bowl down and lied down. “Thanks again, Jasper,” he said, “I really appreciate it.”  
“What are friends for,” she replied with a shrug. He hummed a response as he fell back asleep. Jasper picked up her own bowl and started eating. Her eyes kept flickering back to her human companion lying on the floor of the cave. beads of sweat were forming on his face. She knew she was supposed to keep him warm, but that much couldn’t be good for him, no matter how cold he said he was.  
She reached over to him and pulled down the hood he had created for himself with the blanket. She immediately regretted it. Her eyes grew wide and her heart sunk. There on his neck, were two black boils. ‘No...Not him, please not him! This has to be a mistake!’ she shook her head in disbelief. As much as she tried, she knew that there was no denying it. She had seen this time and again and knew exactly what it meant.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry. I am a horrible person. a horrible, horrible person. the worst part is, this net chapter will not be continuing with this story line. but don't worry. this is not the last you've seen of Thadius. This story is still a random assortment of shorts. Even if I do have him kick the bucket, I will still write about when he was alive and well. Anyways, I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. let me know what you think!


	20. Battle

Prussia, 1805  
Loud booms and the crack of gunfire filled the air. Bullets and bombshells flew back and forth from the opposing sides on the snowy mountain landscape. Two Prussian soldiers took cover behind a small barricade, taking turns to reload and fire their muskets. Unfortunately, the barrage of bullets and cannon fire made it near impossible to stand up and aim. “If this doesn’t let up, then we’re not going to last much longer!” one of them, Admar, shouted.  
“Damn french maniac...why can he just stick to his own land?” The other growled. Suddenly, a bomb that had been hurdling through the air came crashing down a couple yards away. The Two were sent flying from the blast and landed in the open landscape.  
Admar began to get up slowly. pain flooded through his body, but he was mostly uninjured. His companion on the other hand, was not so well off. The man was lying face down on the ground, his left foot completely gone. “Frederick? Frederick!” he cried, trying to shake him awake. Frederick groaned but otherwise did not respond. Admar tried to quickly pick him up and drag him away, when he heard some sort of falling object. he turned in time to see a cannon ball heading straight for him. he tried to heave Frederick out of the way of the approaching iron sphere, but couldn’t lift the man. the young man closed his eyes tight, preparing to be bludgeoned by the weighted object.  
at the last moment, an orange blur streaked in front of them. The young man heard a thud and looked up to see a tall figure in front of them. It had a massive white mane flowing down from under a fur cap. It bore the uniform of the prussian army, but the color was wrong. Gripped in one orange hand extended into the air was the large cannon ball.  
The behemoth turned to the two soldiers, revealing its bejeweled face striped with red. “The Painted Valkyrie…” Admar whispered in awe. He had heard many stories about this being, tales from the north of an ancient figure that defended danish and swedish men in battle centuries ago, but never had he thought them to be true. Even when he had heard his fellow soldiers mention a large orange woman appearing on the battlefield he did not believe it. Yet here she was.  
Before he could say another word to her, she pick him and Frederick up and leapt away with them. Not a minute later, a bomb exploded where they had been standing. “Stay out of sight and get your friend to an infirmary,” she commanded as she set them down.  
His had shot to his forehead in a salute. “Y-yes Ma’am!” he responded. She nodded at him before pulling out her heavy battle axe and heading back out into the fray.  
(Meanwhile)  
Commander Basile gazed out over the battlefield, a scowl clear on his face. It had been a hour since the battle had begun, and everything seemed to be going their way. The Prussian soldiers were no match for their artillery. Then, that orange woman had appeared again, and began tearing through them like a reaper’s scythe through grain. This was the fifth time this had happened. He had had it with this. If this persisted, they would never be able to move up through the rest of europe! The Emperor would not be pleased.  
A Lieutenant ran up to him. “Sir, there’s been an upset! That creature, it’s-” he started.  
“I know,” Basile bit out.  
“Sir, what are we to do? It’s plowing through our men!” the Lieutenant pleaded.  
The French commander stood for a second in silence. He finally sighed and said, “Signal a retreat. But this will be the last one I ever order.” The younger man nodded and turned to leave before the commander stopped him. “Have Professor Guiles brought to me immediately.”  
Commander Basil was sick of all of this. He would not stand for another failure at the hands of that she-beast. A few weeks ago, he had called for a the help of a man well versed in the mystic arts. The man had gathered as much info on this creature as he could at the time. From the accounts of French Kings to ancient Chinese scrolls, Guiles had gathered as much info as he could in hopes of defeating this super soldier, and now was the perfect time to strike. She was going rue the day she decided to mess with this great empire.  
(Later)  
Jasper trudged through the now peaceful battlefield in the evening light...well peaceful in relative terms. The snow was stained red, and men were still dying, but the battle itself had ended. Many of the surviving men had gone to celebrate, but she had decided to stay behind. She wanted to make sure there were no survivors left to die in the frozen field. As much as she loved drinking, she didn’t want to let another fellow soldier die if she could. Even though it had been several thousand years, she could still remember how awful it was to be left behind. So far she had managed to find one man still breathing and had gotten him back but she could find no other visible signs of life...or so she thought.  
She heard a shout come from a few yards away. “Help! Someone! I can’t get up!” She began walking towards the noise. She soon found a man in a tattered prussian uniform with a bandaged leg. There were very few other bodies around him, with only his musket lying beside him. When he spotted her, he lit up with joy. “Oh thank God you are here!” he cried, “I was shot in the leg. I managed to bandage myself up, but I cannot walk. Can you please help me?”  
“That’s what I’m here for,” she said, a slight grin forming on her face. “Has the bleeding in your leg stopped?” she asked as she helped him up.  
“For now, anyways,” he said, “I don’t need any immediate attention.” He had grabbed his musket and began leaning on it, the butt the gun facing the ground.  
“Alright then,” she replied, “But just be sure to see someone when you…” It was then that Jasper noticed something. There was not a single drop of blood on the ground where the man had been laying.  
Before she could say or do anything, a sudden tidal wave of pain flooded through her as the man tore through her chest with the bayonet of his gun. “Merci, Mademoiselle,” he sneered, “Thank you so much for making this so easy.” with that, he removed the blade from her, causing her to disperse in a puff of smoke and her gem fell to the ground.  
He then pulled a box out of his pocket. Before she had the chance to regenerate, he picked up the stone and and sealed it away inside the box and locking it shut. “The commander is going to be so happy, he might just make you into a gift for Napoleon himself!” he whispered to the box. He then shoved it into his pocket, before heading off into pine trees of the mountain.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that's how Jasper ended up in the box.


	21. Wonderful Journey

Jasper trampled through the snowy terrain, carefully cradling her ill companion in her arms. She held him close as she desperately searched for the warp pad. Thadius had always told her she could be too stubborn for her own good. Well, he better appreciate her stubbornness now because she was not about to let in end this way. Not now, not ever. The young man coughed against her chest and shivered in the blanket he was wrapped in. He wasn’t even conscious anymore.  
“We’re almost there, Thad. If you don’t stay with me until then, I’m going to be royally pissed at you!” she said. She had only one option left: take him to the crystal gems. Rose had a healing spring, and although Jasper had no idea where that was, she knew Rose would be more than happy to help.  
Finally, Jasper came acrossed a small clearing. In the center was a smooth, crystal circle dusted with snow. Jasper smiled as she cleared off the cold surface with one hand, before stepping up onto it. “Everything’s gonna be ok, Thadius. Just you wait,” she breathed as a chime sounded and a bright light enveloped them. Thadius stirred slightly but did not wake up as they zipped through the warp tunnel.  
The pair landed inside the temple entrance. The icy night wind blew outside. Everything was quiet. Jasper smiled and stepped off the warp pad. She approached the door with confidence but stopped short of knocking, smile falling. On the door were five gemstones. That meant there was a chance of someone else answering instead of Rose. And if someone else answered, would they even consider helping her? She really didn’t know the other’s positions on humans. For all she knew, they could down right hate them, but care too much about Rose not to do as she wishes or cared more about the planet itself rather than mankind. They already lived as far away from most civilizations as they could. And every time she had run into them, it was only Rose she really saw interacting with humans. If they saw her with Thadius, they might just let him die to spite her, or because they think he helped her wreak havoc or cause harm! And that’s not even considering what they might do to her...Jasper stood there for several minutes, unsure of what to do. If she stayed there was almost a 75% chance he could die anyways. The only other option she had could improve his chances...but she might ever see him again.  
Jasper stood there in silence, eyes closed and frowning deeply. She would have punched a hole in the wall if she didn't think it would alert the Crystal Gems to her presence. She knew what she had to do, and she didn't like it. Not one bit. If she could, she would be strangling whatever divine being there might be watching over the universe for having her have to make this choice.  
“Thadius,” she said. He stirred slightly in her arms, but she couldn't tell if he was actually awake. “If you can understand me, then you better pay attention, because I’m not going to repeat myself,” she growled, “If they help you, do not tell them I was the one who got you here. Say you washed up on shore from a boat and a native helped you, or that you can’t remember what happened. Pretend you don’t know what a gem is. If the other gems besides Rose find out that you’re my friend, they might not treat you so kindly.” She heard a muffled sound from him. She hoped that meant he understood. “Also, I want you to take care of yourself. I’m not going to be around to save your hide anymore, so you’re going to need to learn to stop attracting danger...though I guess I was the bigger trouble maker out of the two of us,” she gave a half grin before continuing, “Even if they get you back to Europe, It’d be a miracle if we ever run into each other again. So keep your head low and stay safe. Got that?” When she didn’t get a response, she sighed and set him on the ground. “I suppose I’m going to have to take that as a yes,” she said, “Hope to see ya again, Thad. I actually had fun traveling with you.”  
With that, she roughly banged on the door three times before running back to the warp pad. She took one last glimpse at her friend before being enveloped in a bright light and heading back to Europe.  
When she landed, everything was quiet. Nothing moved. Everything felt...empty. Jasper fell to her knees. She was alone. Again. It shouldn’t have mattered. She had been alone for thousands of years. What’s a few more? This time though...she didn't want to be alone. As she got up and started walking away, she told herself that she could handle it. She was a quartz, dammit! A stone cold warrior that could take on anything. She stopped walking. The forest was silent. Her fists clenched. In the span of a fraction of a second, she pulled out her battle ax and started wildly swinging at the trees. She tore through one after the other, all while roaring like a wild beast. She was a quartz. She could handle anything…but that didn't mean she didn't have to break down every once in awhile.  
…..  
(Meanwhile)  
Pearl opened the door spear in hand. “Who’s there?” she called, “Hello?” As she scanned the cavern, she found no signs of life. Her eyes narrowed. “I’m warning you!” she said, “Surrender now or face the consequences!” She took a few steps into the room when she felt something against her foot. She heard a loud groan and looked down to find a human wrapped in a blanket on the floor.   
He suddenly started hacking, causing her to back away in disgust. That disgust quickly turned to horror and panic as she noticed that the human had coughed up blood onto the floor. “Oh my stars…” she gasped, clasping a hand over her mouth and dropping her weapon. “Rose! Rose!” she cried as she ran back into the temple.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! I'm finally back to writing this! Yaaaay! Sorry this chapter is so sad. I will write happier chapters in the future, even some with Thadius. I meant to get this out a few weeks ago, but I got caught up in school work and was unable to write anything. Anyways, I hope you enjoyed this. Let me know what you think!  
> Side note: this actually wasn't the saddest ending I wrote for Thadius. For a creative writing final last semester, I converted one of my chapters for this into an entirely different short story entitled "Partners in Time". Lets just say it does not end well for anyone. If you guys want to read it, I'll be happy to post it up here or on fiction press.


	22. Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery

Present Day, Beach City  
When you lived for thousands of years and spent much of that time melding with the lives of the locals, you tend to get noticed from time to time. It can be something as minor as ending up as part of a blurb in a history book or mythology book to something as extreme as being hailed as powerful spirit or god. It’s something that Jasper had gotten used to from her years on Earth. However, there were times where it became a little too much. For example...  
“Hey Jasper, check this out!” Steven called as he raced down the stairs to the large gem sitting on the couch. His laptop was tucked under his arm.  
“What is it?” she said, only half interested, “Is it another one of those silly cat videos? Or did you finally manage to get a hundred ‘followers’ like you were hoping on that weird image sharing site?”  
“No and not yet,” he said still smiling, “This actually has nothing to do with me. It has to do with you!” Jasper straightened up and looked at him curiously. He set the laptop down in front of her and opened it to reveal a Tubetube page. “You’ve become a pop culture icon in Japan! Check it out!” he explained as he clicked on the replay button.   
Jasper arched an eyebrow. She knew that she had become a mythological figure in several places, Japan included, but she hadn’t expected that she’d ever resurface again as anything else. Granted, humans are still retelling the Greek myths in their movies and TV shows. She had always assumed they would have gotten tired of those stories eventually, but apparently they couldn't seem to get enough of them.  
As the video started, it opened up to show a little monster that looked a lot like Jasper. The main difference was that it had pointed ears, visible fangs, and claws on its hands and feet. The pint sized animated monster rampaged across the screen shouting in japanese “I’m tired” and “I’m thirsty” in a high pitched voice while smashing things with an orange hammer.  
Jasper’s face switched from curiosity to confusion as the video continued. “When you’re tired, a small annoyance can turn you into a wild beast in minutes,” a narrator announced in japanese, “Just like this little Jaspa.”  
The tiny Jasper lookalike continued to throw it’s tantrum, it’s voice starting to grate on Jasper’s nerves. Suddenly a silhouette of a bottle appeared on the screen. “That’s why when you need a pick me up,” the narrator continued, “You need the tangy-sweet taste of Peach Mountain Energy Drink!”   
The image of the orange bottle filled out the silhouette and the tiny monster on the screen looked surprised before picking up the bottle and taking a swig of it. “So tasty!” the tiny Jasper squealed, to which Jasper’s eye twitched.  
“And if the caffeine does brighten your mood, the sweetness of the citrus-peach flavor will!” the narrator continued, “Peach Mountain Energy Drink: tame the monster in you!” The commercial closed on an image of the Jasper caricature giving a thumbs up while holding the bottle in it’s other hand.  
Steven closed the page and looked up at Jasper with a smile. “So what did you think? Isn't this cool?” he chirped. However, his smile fell as he noticed Jasper’s teeth were clenched and her fists were balled up as she glared down at the screen. “Jasper?” he asked nervously, “Are you alright?”  
“I’m FINE,” she bit out as she got up and walked over to the warp pad.  
“Uh...where are you going?” he asked.  
“Out,” she said simply before activating the pad and disappearing.   
Steven did not see the orange gem again for the rest of the day. He and worried about her all night, and the gems panicked as they couldn't find her anywhere. The next day however, Steven woke up to the sound of shouting, and was relieved to find Jasper lounging on the couch as Pearl told her off. The funny thing was, the giant quartz didn't even seem annoyed by Pearl’s squawking. She just ignored her as she reclined, grinning a satisfied grin as she occasionally took a swig from a bottle of sake.  
She wouldn’t tell them where she had gone or what she had been doing the other day, no matter how much Steven pleaded. However, later that day he got a pretty good idea of what she had been up to when he opened up his Tubetube account to find a news report from Japan on how some mysterious figure had managed to rip the engines blocks out of several delivery trucks belonging to the company that produced Peach Mountain Energy Drinks.


	23. The Olympain

Broken marble. That was all Jasper could see for miles around. Crumbled pillars and cracked stone blocks made up the ruins of the greek citadel that once stood in this field. Some my find it beautiful. Some may find it tragic. Jasper just found it boring. Her companion on the other hand was absolutely enthralled by his surroundings. “Why did you want to see this garbage again?” Jasper asked. Not long after finding out about the warp pads did Thadius start pestering her about seeing the ruins of Greece. Finally she had relented and taken him to see them. She didn’t see what the big deal was. Gem architecture was better and honestly lasted much longer.  
Thadius turned to her in surprise and looked aghast at her statement. “Garbage?!” he repeated, “This isn’t garbage! This is history! Legendary!” He started staring off dreamily after he climbed atop a broken pillar. “This is the lineage of the peak of human culture! The once center for the arts and philosophies!” he exclaimed, “Every artist in Italy dreams of seeing these monuments. They harken back to a time of heroism and scholarship and scientific discovery! Of Plato and Aristotle and the glory of Athens! Oh what it would have been like to live back then…”  
Jasper rolled her eyes and made a gagging motion at his display. “Jeez, Calm down. Don’t give yourself an imbalance of the humors.* You look like you’re going swoon any second!” she stated smirking at him, “Besides, if you think this is the peak of human culture, I’d hate to see what you think is the average. You’re totally romanticizing it. It wasn’t that great back then. You all were just as much of filthy apes back then as you are now.”  
Thadius turned to her and pouted. “Oh and I suppose you know because you were there?” he retorted, sitting down.  
“Yup,” she said making a popping noise with the “p” as she leaned against the pillar.  
Thadius blinked in surprise. “Really?!” he questioned, “How?!”  
“You forget that I’m thousands of years old,” she said with a smirk.  
“Oh right…” he muttered in embarrassment. Then his eyes lit up. “Can you tell me about it?” he asked, “What was it like? Did you meet Plato? Did you get to watch the Olympics?”  
Jasper glanced at him lazily before an idea came to mind. She then smirked wickedly. “Watch the Olympics? I created them!” she said closing her eyes.  
“Really? But I thought Hercules started the olympics!” Thadius questioned.  
“Who do you think inspired the myths?” she said turning back to him.   
“How did it happen?” he asked.  
Jasper paused a second to think. “Well you see,” she started closing her eyes again, “It all started one day when I was passing through a city where some kids were playing discus in the park. One of them threw it wrong and it nailed me in the head.” “Naturally I was pissed, so I chucked it as hard as I could and got it embedded into a stone pillar,” she continued, looking up leftward, “the people were so amazed by this, that they wanted me to perform all sorts of mighty feats. They had me toss javelins, lift heavy weights, and some even tried to wrestle with me! Of course, no matter what I was the best at whatever I did.” “I was called the strongest mortal man around. Apparently they were too stupid to realise I was neither man nor mortal. Soon enough, people started challenging me,” she said with a snort, “They started creating events to face off against me, and thus the Olympics was born!”   
“Wow….I can’t believe it,” Thadius said.  
Jasper smirked. “I know. Pretty impressive, huh?” she said crossing her arms.  
“No...I mean I literally can’t believe that,” he said smirking, “You were lying the whole time!”  
Jasper faltered and looked at her human companion in surprise. “How did you figure it out?” she questioned.  
“You kept looking away from me while you were talking and never made eye contact,” he said, “A lot of people do that when they lie.”  
“Damn and here I thought I’d be able to have some fun with you,” Jasper huffed, “Well, looks like I’ll have to find a new human to have following me around. You’re no fun.” She smirked at him playfully. “I was being a little honest though,” she said, “A lot of demigods and Greek myths were based on my exploits. And I did actually compete in the Olympics. Several times actually. Then I got banned ‘cause I kept winning everything. I then politely respond to their ban by knocking down a wall of the stadium.”  
“Now that I can believe,” Thadius said with a chuckle. There was quiet for a few moments before he adopted a thoughtful look. “Hey, Jasper?” he asked, “How long do gems live?”   
She shrugged in response. “I dunno. It depends on whether we’re careful or not,” she said, “If we’re not stupid and take care of ourselves then we could very well live forever. Why do you ask?”  
Thadius shrugged. “Just curious I guess,” he said. Things were quiet for a second before he spoke again. “You know, with your experience you could probably be a pretty wealthy historian,” he noted, “Some scholars would pay a fortune to know what you know.”  
Jasper snorted. “Yeah right,” she responded rolling her eyes, “Like I could stand sitting in a room all day writing. On top of that, I doubt my accounts would be very professional. They’d be something like ‘This is king so-and-so. He was an idiot. I punched him in the face once. It was hilarious when he stumbled down the stairs afterwards. Then he sent his guards after me.’”  
Thadius snickered at that. “Now that would be something I’d pay to see!” he exclaimed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *an imbalance of the humors is essencally where people thought extreme emotiomal reactions caused illness.  
> Hope you guys liked this chapter. Sadly, I don't know if I'll continue this story. i've lost a lot of inspiration for it, even though I know there is still a lot that could be done with this idea. I've just gotten really interested in other things, even have a new fma crossover fic in the works. Still, I'm glad you guys have enjoyed this story. It's been alot of fun to write.


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